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HB2843 • 2026

portable solar power devices; requirements

HB2843 - portable solar power devices; requirements

Energy
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
Patty Contreras, Cesar Aguilar, Junelle Cavero, Janeen Connolly, Quantá Crews, Brian Garcia, Consuelo Hernandez, Sarah Liguori, Mariana Sandoval, Stephanie Simacek, Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, Betty J Villegas, Priya Sundareshan
Last action
2026-01-27
Official status
House second read
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific penalties for non-compliance by local governments.

Portable Solar Power Devices; Requirements

This bill sets rules for portable solar power devices in Arizona, including safety standards and protections against fees or restrictions from utilities.

What This Bill Does

  • Prohibits public power entities and service corporations from requiring customers to obtain approval before installing or using a portable solar generation device.
  • Prevents these entities from charging fees or making customers install additional equipment for using portable solar devices.
  • Requires that portable solar devices meet safety standards set by the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) and include features to stop electricity flow during power outages.
  • Designates public service corporations or public power entities as not liable for damages in any civil action if an electric utility disconnects power and a customer's use of a portable solar device causes injury or death.
  • Prohibits cities, towns, or counties from requiring additional permits or inspections for portable solar devices that meet the safety standards.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Customers who want to install and use portable solar generation devices
  • Public power entities and service corporations in Arizona
  • Local governments like cities and counties

Terms To Know

Portable Solar Generation Device
A moveable device that uses sunlight to generate electricity, designed to connect to a building's electrical system through a standard outlet.
Public Power Entity
An organization like a city or town that provides electricity under state law and is not a public service corporation.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify what happens if portable solar devices do not meet the safety standards.
  • It's unclear how utilities will enforce these rules without charging fees or requiring additional equipment.
  • The exact penalties for non-compliance by local governments are not detailed.

Bill History

  1. 2026-01-27 House

    House second read

  2. 2026-01-26 House

    House Rules: None

  3. 2026-01-26 House

    House Natural Resources, Energy & Water: DISC/HELD

  4. 2026-01-26 House

    House first read

Official Summary Text

HB2843 - 572R - House Bill Summary

ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

57th
Legislature, 2nd Regular Session

Majority Research Staff

HB
2843
: portable solar power devices; requirements

Sponsor:
Representative Contreras P, LD 12

Committee
on Natural Resources, Energy & Water

Overview

Prohibits
a public power entity or a public service corporation from requiring certain
conditions of a customer that uses a portable solar generation device.

History

A
public power entity
means any municipal corporation,
city, town or other political subdivision that is organized under state law,
that generates, transmits, distributes or otherwise provides electricity and
that is not a public service corporation (
A.R.S. � 30-801
).

The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) is authorized to
supervise and regulate every public service corporation in the state and do all
things necessary and convenient in the exercise of that power and jurisdiction
(
A.R.S. � 40-202
).

Provisions

1.

Prohibits a public
power entity or a public service corporation from requiring a customer, that
uses a portable solar generation device, to:

a.

obtain
approval before installation or use;

b.

pay a fee or
charge; and

c.

install additional
controls or equipment. (Sec. 1, 2)

2.

Requires a
portable solar generation device offered for sale or sold to:

a.

be listed
and labeled in accordance with a national safety standard approved by the ACC;

b.

include
integrated means that stop energizing the building circuit on loss of utility
power and are consistent with certain standards; and

c.

comply with
the manufacturer's installation instructions and the relevant national electric
code provisions. (Sec. 1, 2)

3.

Designates a
public service corporation or a public power entity as not liable for damages
in any civil action for an injury or death due to a customer's operation of a
portable solar generation device, if an electric utility disconnects power.
(Sec. 1, 2)

4.

Prohibits a
municipality or county from requiring additional approval or precluding use of
a portable solar generation device that complies with this act. (Sec. 1, 2)

5.

Requires the
ACC, within one year, adopt rules that comply with this act. (Sec. 5)

6.

Defines
portable
solar generation device
. (Sec. 1, 2, 3, 4)

7.

8.

9.

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2843

11.

2/13/2026� Page 0 Natural
Resources, Energy & Water

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Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HB2843 - 572R - I Ver

REFERENCE TITLE:
portable solar power devices; requirements

State of Arizona

House of Representatives

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

HB 2843

Introduced by

Representatives
Contreras P: Aguilar, Cavero, Connolly, Crews, Garcia, Hernandez C, Liguori,
Sandoval, Simacek, Stahl Hamilton, Villegas;� Senator Sundareshan

AN
ACT

amending title 30, Arizona Revised
Statutes, by adding chapter 9; amending title 40, chapter 2, article 1, arizona
revised statutes; by adding SECTION 40-207; amending section 44-1761,
Arizona Revised Statutes; amending title 44, chapter 11, article 11, arizona
revised statutes, by adding section 44-1765; relating to solar power.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Title 30, Arizona Revised Statutes,
is amended by adding chapter 9, to read:

CHAPTER 9

SOLAR ENERGY

ARTICLE 1. GENERAL
PROVISIONS

START_STATUTE
30-1101.

Portable solar generation devices; requirements; liability;
definition

A. A public power entity may not
require a customer that uses a portable solar generation device to:

1. Obtain approval before installing
or using the portable solar generation device.

2. Pay a fee or charge.

3. Install additional controls or
equipment beyond what is integrated into the system.

B. A portable solar generation device
that is offered for sale and sold in this state shall:

1. Be listed and labeled in
accordance with a national safety standard that is approved by the corporation
commission.

2. Include integrated means that stop
energizing the building circuit on loss of utility power and that are
consistent with the institute of electrical and electronics engineers
standards.

3. Comply with the manufacturer's
installation instructions and the national electrical code provisions that
apply to cord-and-plug connected equipment.

C. A public power entity is not
liable for damages in any civil action for any injury or death due to a
customer's operation of a portable solar generation device if an electric
utility disconnects power.

D. Notwithstanding sections 9-801,
9-802, 9-803 and 11-861, a city, town or county may not
require a permit, an inspection or any additional local approval for a portable
solar generation device or prohibit or restrict the use of a portable solar
generation device that complies with subsection B of this section.

E. For the purposes of this section,
"Portable solar generation device":

1. Means a moveable photovoltaic
generation device that:

(
a
) Has a
maximum power output of not more than 1,200 watts.

(
b
) Is designed
to be connected to a building's electrical system through a STANDARD 120 volt
alternating current outlet.

(
c
) Is intended
primarily to offset part of the customer's electricity consumption.

(
d
) Meets the
standards of the most recent version of the national electrical code.

(
e
) Is
certified by a nationally recognized testing laboratory.

2. Does not include a generating
facility, distributed generation facility or net metering facility.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Title 40, chapter 2, article 1, Arizona
Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 40-207, to read:

START_STATUTE
40-207.

Portable solar generation devices; requirements; liability;
definition

A. A public service corporation may
not require a customer that uses a portable solar generation device to:

1. Obtain approval before installing
or using the portable solar generation device.

2. Pay a fee or charge.

3. Install any additional controls or
equipment beyond what is integrated into the system.

B. A portable solar generation device
that is offered for sale and sold in this state shall:

1. Be listed and labeled in
accordance with a national safety standard that is approved by the corporation
commission.

2. Include integrated means that stop
energizing the building circuit on loss of utility power and that are
consistent with the institute of electrical and electronics engineers
standards.

3. Comply with the manufacturer's
installation instructions and the national electrical code provisions that
apply to cord-and-plug connected equipment.

C. A public service corporation is
not liable for damages in any civil action for any injury or death due to a
customer's operation of a portable solar generation device if an electric
utility disconnects power.

D. Notwithstanding sections 9-801,
9-802, 9-803 and 11-861, a city, town or county may not
require a permit, an inspection or any additional local approval for a portable
solar generation device or prohibit or restrict the use of a portable solar
generation device that complies with subsection B of this section.

E. For the purposes of this section,
"Portable solar generation device":

1. Means a moveable photovoltaic
generation device that:

(
a
) Has a
maximum power output of not more than one thousand two hundred watts.

(
b
) Is designed
to be connected to a building's electrical system through a STANDARD one
hundred twenty volt alternating current outlet.

(
c
) Is intended
primarily to offset part of the customer's electricity consumption.

(
d
) Meets the
standards of the most recent version of the national electrical code.

(
e
) Is
certified by a nationally recognized testing laboratory.

2. Does not include a generating
facility, distributed generation facility or net metering facility.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 3. Section 44-1761, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
44-1761.

Definitions

In this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Collector" means a component of a
solar energy device that is used to absorb solar radiation, convert it to heat
or electricity and transfer the heat to a heat transfer fluid or to storage.

2. "Distributed energy generation system":

(a) Means a device or system that is used to
generate or store electricity, that has an electric delivery capacity, singly
or in connection with other similar devices or systems, greater than one
kilowatt or one kilowatt-hour, and that is primarily for on-site energy
consumption.

(b) Does not include
either:

(
i
)
An
electric generator that is intended for occasional use.

(
ii
) A portable
solar generation device as defined in sections 30-1101 and 40-207.

3. "Energize" or "energized"
means that the distributed energy generation system is installed and
operational for its intended purposes of generating or storing electricity.

4. "Heat exchanger" means a component of a
solar energy device that is used to transfer heat from one fluid to another.

5. "Interconnected" or
"interconnection" means a distributed energy generation system that
is connected to the power grid and that is able to transfer electricity to the
power grid.

6. "Seller or marketer" means an
individual or a company acting through its officers, employees or agents that
markets, sells or solicits the sale, financing or lease of distributed energy
generation systems or negotiates or enters into agreements for the sale,
financing or lease of distributed energy generation systems.

7. "Solar daylighting" means a device that
is specifically designed to capture and redirect the visible portion of the
solar beam spectrum, while controlling the infrared portion, for use in
illuminating interior building spaces in lieu of artificial lighting.

8. "Solar energy device":

(a) Means a system or series of mechanisms that is
designed primarily to provide heating, to provide cooling, to produce
electrical power, to produce mechanical power, to provide solar daylighting or
to provide any combination of the foregoing by means of collecting and
transferring solar generated energy into such uses either by active or passive
means. Such systems may also have the capability of storing such
energy for future utilization. Passive systems shall clearly be
designed as a solar energy device such as a trombe wall and not merely a part
of a normal structure such as a window.

(b) Includes a distributed energy generation system.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 4. Title 44, chapter 11, article 11,
Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 44-1765, to read:

START_STATUTE
44-1765.

Portable solar generation device

A portable solar generation device as defined in
sections 30-1101 and 40-207 shall include a device or feature that prevents the
system from energizing the building's electrical system during a power outage.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 5.
Corporation
commission; rules

Within one year after the effective
date of this act, the corporation commission shall adopt rules that comply with
title 30, chapter 9, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by this act, and
section 40-207, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by this act.