SolSmart
Solar panels at the City of Athens, OH Wastewater Treatment Plant
What is It?
SolSmart is a national program that helps cities, towns, counties, and regional organizations become solar energy leaders.
How to Get Started
Reach out to either Mat Roberts or Emily Bails to schedule a 1:1 meeting to discuss whether SolSmart designation is right for you and how we can help! We can provide technical assistance to SOPEC member and non-member communities.
For those already designated but looking to level up, SOPEC is also available to help you do so. Please reach out and be ready to discuss your scorecard if you didn’t work with us for your initial designation.
Complete a Solar Statement here to begin the SolSmart designation process. The SolSmart team will reach out to you to confirm if anyone (such as SOPEC) is helping with this process, and if applicable, will begin a zoning review.
SOPEC’s team will help communities determine which criteria best meet your goals and any actions you may have already taken. We will customize templates to meet your needs and guide you through the scorecard process until you are ready to submit for designation. From there, we will handle the submission process and any clarifications requested by the reviewers.
Earning Points for SolSmart
Regardless of pathway, there are five major criteria categories where a community can earn points: permitting and inspection; planning and zoning; government operations; community engagement; market development, and innovative action.
Communities can work towards SolSmart bronze in various ways, depending on their solar goals. While there are pre-requisites that need met, communities can meet the remaining criteria through larger actions such as solar installs or code changes, or through smaller ones such as taking additional solar trainings, adding a solar page to their website, or other community engagement efforts.
To achieve Bronze designation through the Standard pathway, you will need to meet the following criteria:
PR-1: Solar Statement
Demonstrate your local government’s commitment to pursuing SolSmart designation
PR-1: Zoning Review
Once a solar statement is completed, the SolSmart review team will reach out to you to review zoning requirements and possible restrictions to solar PV development in your community.
P1-1: Permitting Checklist
Post an online permitting checklist detailing your community’s permitting process for residential rooftop solar PV
20 points in the Permitting and Inspection category
20 points in the Planning and Zoning category
20 points in any other category
As every community is different, the SolSmart program is flexible. No matter your community’s situation and goals, we will work with you through the scorecard to achieve designation in a way that best works for you.
Resources and Templates
Program guides and specific resources such as recorded solar training, template memos and checklists, guidance documents, etc can be found on this page. A sample Pathway to Bronze guide can be found here.
Program guides summarize best practices for local governments, counties and regional governments. Technical assistance is tailored around the goals and priorities of your community, which can include expert review of materials, webinars, trainings and 1:1 consultations.
SOPEC has member-specific guides and resources as well, including a Step by Step Guide template (Athens City example), and can customize templates to best meet a community’s needs and simplify the process.