Inspection

Inspection is one of the special focus categories for the SolSmart designation program. To achieve a Bronze designation, a city must earn at least 20 points across the six Special Focus categories. A city must complete I-1 for Silver and Gold designations as well as earn at least 100 points overall for a Silver designation or at least 200 points overall for a Gold designation. Below is a list of regional guidance and best practice documents. When regional examples are not available, national examples are available through SolSmart resources.

I-1

Provide cross-training of inspection and permitting staff on solar PV via in-person or online resources.  Training must have occurred within the past five years (required for Silver and Gold, 20 points).

Resources & Best Practices

Solar Inspector Training Webinar

I-2

Require no more than 2 inspections for accessory-use solar PV (10 points).

Samples

City of Cedar Hill Solar Panel Installations

I-3

Offer inspection appointment times in lieu of appointment windows (10 points).

I-4

Make inspection requirements for PV available online (10 points).

I-5

Have a fixed time frame between inspection requests and scheduling of inspections of no more than 10 days (10 points).

Samples

I-6

Provide an online process for scheduling and responding to inspection requests (20 points).

Samples

City of Plano Permit Portal

City of Denton Online Portal

Lewisville Online Permits

I-7

Local Innovation: Please describe your local innovation regarding Inspection. Be sure to explain how this helps reduce the soft cost of solar PV in your community (up to 20 points).

Source

Icon courtesy of Kirby Wu from Noun Project.