Item 8- Austin Solar Installation and Permitting Process Presentation Revised — original pdf

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Lowering cost and time for solar deployment in Austin Presented to EUC, RMC, AE, ADS David Levesque, Stan Pipkin 4/30/26 & 6/10/26 Who are we? ● Industry ○ Stan Pipkin: 20 year veteran ■ Operating as a Participating Contractor with Austin Energy in Residential, Commercial and Municipal solar projects ○ David Levesque: 1 year novice ■ Operating as Owner’s Representative for Solar Austin Community Solar Program Desired outcome ● RMC resolution that creates a working group to find solutions ○ ○ Including all stakeholders: AE Solar, AE Metering, All ADS Dept., Contractors, etc In person meetings to review and implement options that enable achievement of our mutual goals Problem ● Complex slow process for customer sited solar in Austin which increases costs, reduces customer satisfaction, and has potential to miss our City local solar goals. Goals ● 405 MW local solar by 2035 ● Within the values of Austin and Austin Energy ○ Reliable ○ Affordable ○ Clean ○ Equitable ● Healthy solar contractor industry ● Positive view of solar by Austin residents and businesses Principles of solutions ● Best practices that lower cost and increase speed ● Develop Repeatable, Scalable, Resilient Processes ● Normalize Solar Permitting and Interconnection where possible ● Develop Processes that respond to Industry Changes and Innovations rapidly ○ Details to be discussed in the working group 120 days start to complete on average (Permit to Closeout) This Timeline does not reflect the full elapsed time from Contract to Closeout 2025 may represent outlier due to ITC expiration time pressures Permit and Inspection Timelines AE stated times (not including ADS) Actual wait times 1. Residential 6-11 weeks 2. Commercial is longer Datasets seem siloed Jotform 1. EECP 2. AMANDA 3. AB+C 4. 5. PDFs 6. Emails 7. Chats 8. Phone calls 9. TCAD Data errors/inconsistencies cause months of delays 1. 900 Springdale Rd. a. Address data entry error resolution missing 1.5 month delay 2. KOOP Radio a. Address data entry error resolution missing: 3 month delay 3. Haca Rosewood a. Building permit process out of step with adoption of IECC 2024: 6 month delay Data Strategy: Structured vs Unstructured Data 1. PDFs are unstructured data. Checks, computations, can’t happen without a human. When a human gets involved errors occur. 2. Databases are structured data. The software can perform automatic checks, can share data across departments, can easily create reports. a. Is the name on this application correct? Does this person have the authority to authorize work? Is this the correct address for that location? b. c. Do these two pieces of equipment work together: panels and inverters for example Requirements & inspections are more complex than other jurisdictions Root problem: Austin Energy metering trigger upgrades to bring everything up to code when solar is installed. This is not the process in other jurisdictions. The work is not easily understood from the beginning. The guidelines seem unclear. This adds, cost, complexity, and delays. AE and ADS not on the same page NOTE: We understand some content of the email from ADS is not accurate. The point of this slide is to demonstrate that ADS staff and AE staff are not on the same page and aren’t giving clear guidance to customers and developers. Potential areas of improvement ● Single authority that can make decisions/escalate and resolve issues ● Data management & Process ○ Capture ○ Cleanliness ○ Accuracy ○ Access ○ User experience ○ Error rates ● Time from step to step in the process ○ EECP for example ● Reference Federal and State best practices Potential solution: 2025 Texas State Law 1. Expedited Permitting (SB 1202) To combat local government delays, this law allows for "third-party" permit reviews. ● ● ● Faster Approvals: If a local regulatory authority does not process a permit in a timely manner, licensed third parties (like professional engineers) can review documents and conduct inspections. Immediate Construction: Once a third-party notice is submitted to the local authority, construction can often begin immediately. Standardized Tools: Encourages cities to use automated platforms like SolarAPP+ to issue permits within two business days. Desired outcome ● RMC resolution that creates a working group to find solutions ○ ○ Including all stakeholders: AE Solar, AE Metering, All ADS Dept., Contractors, etc In person meetings to review and implement options that enable achievement of our mutual goals Proposed working group members 1. Austin Energy Solar & Metering (Rebate? Program design?) 2. ADS Departments (Building, Electrical, Intake, Payment, Customer services etc) 3. Contractors/EPC/Installers 4. Solar Austin 5. Permit expeditors 6. Feedback from a. EUC b. RMC c. d. Solar customers via a survey TXSES Contact information Stan Pipkin: spipkin@lighthousesolar.com David Levesque: david.levesque@solaraustin.org