Author: Rosa Hance
Good news to share for Marylanders who support the clean energy transition! Despite historic blows to the clean energy industry from the federal government, Maryland counties and municipalities are moving to adopt SolarAPP+ which will speed up residential rooftop solar and home energy storage permitting.
After the federal funding freeze early this year, the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) ensured that critical programs to implement the Brighter Tomorrow Act of 2024 were still funded. With the compliance deadline of August 1, 2025 looming, the state backfilled federal dollars to support their FY25 SolarAPP+ Implementation grantees and didn’t stop there. The Maryland Energy Administration then immediately rolled out the FY26 SolarAPP+ Implementation Grant in a streamlined, simplified format.
Montgomery County was the first to implement solar permitting reform in the state back in 2021 and is working this year to add energy storage. Prince George’s and Worcester Counties were granted FY25 funds and are currently implementing SolarAPP+. While waiting on the larger jurisdictions to move forward, several jurisdictions made their way through the process unassisted and are already up and running. Hearty congratulations to Kent County, Rock Hall, Rockville, and Salisbury for implementing SolarAPP+ to offer a streamlined permit process for residential rooftop solar and home energy systems!
Consider sending your own note to thank your jurisdiction for supporting residential rooftop solar and home energy systems. Please encourage them to implement SolarAPP+ as soon as possible and apply for the MEA grant by January 31, 2026.
All Maryland jurisdictions that do their own permitting are required to use automated plan review for solar and home energy storage by the Brighter Tomorrow Act. The compliance deadline was August 1, 2025. Now is the time for local action to ensure that solar continues to grow on as many rooftops in Maryland as possible!
Want to help bring Solar APP+ to your local jurisdiction? Send a letter to your county council and county executive today!