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Cutting Through Florida’s Red Tape

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April 6, 2026

A residential solar system can be installed in a day or two, but before panels go up on your roof, your installer must obtain the proper permits from your permitting office. That can take much longer, especially in the Sunshine State.  

“In Florida, we have the strictest permitting in the nation,” said Heaven Campbell, SUN’s Florida Senior Program Director. This process is time-consuming and is not standardized, creating barriers to solar adoption and increased costs for homeowners. 

SUN has worked for more than a decade to improve solar permitting across the state–from SolSmart partnership to local ordinances. In 2025, those efforts culminated in a new Florida law that will significantly reduce the time between signing a solar contract and turning on your system.

Pushing for Permitting Progress 

To help make solar installation faster, easier, and more affordable, local governments across the country have implemented third-party permitting and inspection software. These free online tools can make permit processing instantaneous. 

Florida is a prime use case for this software, but state law prevented permitting agencies from adopting it. To address this, SUN worked with partners to propose draft legislation that would codify the use of third-party software. “We have these tools at our fingertips to be able to streamline and quickly and safely and effectively issue permits and then inspect jobs, and we should be using them,” said Heaven. 

Leaning on our solar supporters across the state to meet, thank, and support the bill sponsors, the bill passed. This change gives the greenlight for third-party providers to work in FL, requires a 5-day permitting turnaround, and decreases superfluous paperwork for solar permits–meaning faster deployment at a lower cost.

Pressing Past Headwinds

As federal incentives sunset, state and local solutions to keeping solar affordable become even more critical. Soft costs like labor and permitting account for nearly two-thirds of the overall price tag of a home solar system, making them one of the most powerful levers for reducing financial barriers to adoption. 

Successfully codifying the use of this software in a state with significant regulatory hurdles signals to local governments everywhere that these tools can work for them too, opening the door for wider implementation. “That will help us prolifically cut down on the soft costs of solar—more than enough to make up for the loss of the [federal] tax credit,” said Heaven. 

By passing this law, SUN has protected Florida’s solar momentum and modeled how other states can do the same.