RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY.

SB2352

THE SENATE

S.B. NO.

2352

THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE, 2026

STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating
to renewable energy
.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

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SECTION 1.
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The legislature finds that Act 97, Session
Laws of Hawaii 2015, requires electric utilities in the State to achieve a one
hundred per cent renewable portfolio standard by December 31, 2045, in order to
transition the State away from imported fossil fuels and toward locally
available renewable energy sources.

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The legislature further finds that
to encourage the timely build-out of a diverse, resilient, and reliable
portfolio of low-cost renewable energy generation and storage assets, the State
must lower the administrative barriers that constrain deployment of residential
and commercial-scale distributed energy resources.

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The legislature additionally finds
that the permitting review process currently adds substantial time and cost to
the adoption of residential solar and energy storage projects and that
self-certification by duly licensed design professionals can significantly
reduce this time, cost, and administrative burden without sacrificing public
health and safety.

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The purpose of this Act is to reduce
administrative barriers to the deployment of energy generation and storage
technology systems by requiring government entities in the State that issue
building permits to:

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(1)
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Establish
a self‑certification process for behind‑the‑meter,
customer‑sited solar distributed energy resource systems that deems
permit applications approved and allows applicants to proceed to build solar
distributed energy resource system immediately; and

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(2)
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Develop guidance for determining specific conditions under which a
Federal Emergency Management Agency-mandated No-
R
ise Certification is not required for a solar distributed energy resource
system located in a regulatory floodway.

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SECTION 2.
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Chapter 196, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
amended by adding two new sections to be appropriately designated and to read
as follows:

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�196-A
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Building
permits; self-certification; solar distributed energy resource systems.
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(a)
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By
, each government
entity in the State that issues building permits shall establish a self‑certification
process for behind‑the‑meter, customer‑sited solar
distributed energy resource system projects that deems permit applications
approved and allows applicants to proceed to build the solar distributed energy
resource system immediately; provided that:

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(1)
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The project is
not located on a property within a special flood hazard area
as identified on the
Federal
Emergency Management Agency's current Flood Insurance Rate Maps;
and

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(2)
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The government
entity receives from the project owner or agent of the project owner, prior to
the commencement of any work:

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(A)
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An
attestation from a licensed design professional that the proposed project is
not located within a flood zone that requires it to comply with federal, state,
or county floodplain management development codes or laws pursuant to the
requirements of the National Flood Insurance Program.
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As part of the attestation form, the licensed
design professional shall provide available Flood Insurance Rate Map panel
information, which shall include the:

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(i)
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Community
name and community identification number;

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(ii)
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Panel
number;

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(iii)
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Suffix
indicating the number of times the specific panel has been revised;

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(iv)
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Panel
date; and

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(v)
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Flood
zones;

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(B)
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A
request for issuance of the permit that includes a statement that the owner or
agent of the owner is prepared to pay any required fees; and

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(C)
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Proof
of a valid license in the respective field for any professional installing the
project and confirmation that the installation of the project will comply with
all applicable codes and laws.

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(b)
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The self-certification process shall allow a
project's licensed design professionals to conduct permit reviews and
inspections using commercially available software.
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The licensed design professionals' approvals
shall be accepted without additional documentation; provided that the submitted
documentation demonstrates compliance with all applicable codes and laws.
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The self-certification process shall allow a
project's licensed design professionals to utilize offline field reports for
inspections.

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(c)
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If the requirements of subsections (a) and
(b) are satisfied, the applicable government entity in the State that issues
building permits shall issue the building permit number and close the permit
within thirty days after the date that the application was submitted.

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(d)
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As used in this section:

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"Licensed design
professional" means a professional engineer, architect, surveyor, or
landscape architect licensed under chapter 464.

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"Offline field report"
means a report that uses photos and videos taken of the project on-site and
submitted to a permitting authority to allow inspection remotely and
asynchronously.

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"Solar distributed energy
resource system" means an assembly of solar energy-generating or
energy-storing materials, or any combined assembly of solar energy-generating
and energy-storing materials, and the related infrastructure necessary for its
operation.

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�196-B
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Solar distributed energy resource systems;
No-
R
ise Certification; exemption; regulatory floodways.
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(a)
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Each government entity in the State that
issues building permits shall develop
Federal Emergency
Management Agency-accepted guidance for determining specific conditions under
which a Federal Emergency Management Agency-mandated No-
R
ise Certification
is not required for a solar distributed energy resource system located in a
regulatory floodway

as identified on the Federal Emergency Management Agency's current Flood
Insurance Rate Maps.

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(b)
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Notwithstanding subsection (a), the project owner or agent of the
project owner shall:

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(1)
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Comply with all
applicable codes and laws;

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(2)
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Properly
install the
solar distributed energy
resource system
on an already existing structure; and

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(3)
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Not create
additional obstruction within the regulatory floodway.

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(c)
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As used in this section, "solar
distributed energy resource system" has the same meaning as in section
196-A.
"

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SECTION 3.
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In codifying the new sections added by
section 2 of this Act, the revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate
section numbers for the letters used in designating the new sections in this
Act.

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SECTION 4.
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New statutory material is underscored.

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SECTION 5.
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This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

_____________________________

Report Title:

Solar
Distributed Energy Resource Systems; Building Permits; Self-Certification Process;
No-Rise Certification; Regulatory Floodways

Description:

Requires
government entities in the State that issue building permits to establish
a self‑certification process for behind‑the‑meter,
customer‑sited solar distributed energy resource systems that deems
permit applications approved and allows applicants to proceed to build solar
distributed energy resource system immediately.
�

Requires government entities in the State that issue building permits to
develop guidance for determining specific conditions when a Federal Emergency
Management Agency-mandated No-Rise Certification is not required for a solar
distributed energy resource system located in a regulatory floodway.

The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.