HB 2609: PUC; Portable Solar Generation Device; Condominiums; Requirements; Registration; Online System; Reports

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.B. NO.	2609
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:

 

     SECTION 1.  The legislature finds that solar energy, along with wind energy, has become the most cost-effective source of electricity in the world.  The State has long capitalized on its abundant sunlight through large-scale solar farms that supply power to electric utilities and widespread rooftop solar systems that serve individual households.  Hawaii currently leads the nation in rooftop solar installations per capita, and continuing advances in technology have made solar energy more accessible and affordable than ever before.

     The legislature further finds that portable solar generation devices—commonly referred to as balcony solar or plug-in solar—offer new opportunities for families to generate their own electricity.  These systems are particularly advantageous to residents of apartments and rental properties.  Apartment dwellers can install units on balconies and renters can easily relocate their systems when they move to a new home.

     Compared with rooftop solar, portable solar generation devices have significantly lower upfront costs—generally between $500 and $1,000—and can be installed by consumers without specialized training.  Although these devices produce less electricity than typical rooftop systems, they can supply enough power to operate common household appliances such as lights, televisions, computers, and refrigerators.

     Once installed, a portable solar generation device plugs into a standard household electrical outlet.  Electricity generated by the device is used by appliances connected to the home's other outlets, while built-in safety features prevent electricity from flowing into the grid.  Any surplus electricity generated is unused and cannot be sold to the electric utility.

     Portable solar generation devices may also be paired with battery storage, allowing users to store electricity produced during the day for use at night or at other times when the sun is not shining.  Although batteries remain relatively expensive, costs are decreasing, and combined systems can yield long-term savings on household electricity expenses.

     The legislature therefore finds that establishing a clear regulatory framework for portable solar generation devices will encourage their safe and effective use, expand access to renewable energy, and advance the State toward its clean energy goals.

     Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to establish a regulatory framework to introduce the use of portable solar generation devices in the State, beginning within units in condominiums organized pursuant to chapter 514B, Hawaii Revised Statutes, subject to certain conditions.

     SECTION 2.  Chapter 269, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding two new sections to part I to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

     "§269-    Portable solar generation devices; requirements.  (a)  A portable solar generation device that meets the requirements of this section shall not be subject to any:

     (1)  Net energy metering program requirements under this chapter; or

     (2)  Interconnection requirements under part IX of this chapter.

     (b)  A portable solar generation device shall include a device or feature that prevents the portable solar generation device from energizing the building's electrical system during a power outage.

     (c)  No electric utility company shall require a customer using a portable solar generation device to:

     (1)  Obtain the electric utility company's approval to install or use the device;

     (2)  Pay any fee or charge related to the device; or

     (3)  Install any additional controls or equipment beyond what is integrated into the device.

     (d)  A portable solar generation device may be installed only within units in condominiums organized pursuant to chapter 514B.

     (e)  No electric utility company shall be liable for any damage or injury caused by a portable solar generation device.

     §269-    Portable solar generation devices; registration; online system.  (a)  The public utilities commission shall establish and maintain an online system for registering portable solar generation devices in the State.  The commission shall not require owners of portable solar generation devices to pay a fee to register in the online system.

     (b)  The public utilities commission may contract with a third party to establish and maintain the online registration system required pursuant to this section."

     SECTION 3.  Section 269-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended as follows:

     1.  By adding a new definition to be appropriately inserted and to read:

     ""Portable solar generation device" means a moveable photovoltaic generation device that:

     (1)  Has a maximum power output of not more than 1.2 kilowatts;

     (2)  Is designed to be connected to a building's electrical system through a standard one hundred and twenty-volt alternating current outlet;

     (3)  Is intended primarily to offset part of the customer's consumption of electricity from electric utility companies; and

     (4)  Is certified by Underwriters Laboratories, Inc., or an equivalent nationally recognized testing laboratory, or each part of the device is so certified."

     2.  By amending the definition of "public utility" to read:

     ""Public utility":

     (1)  Includes every person who may own, control, operate, or manage as owner, lessee, trustee, receiver, or otherwise, whether under a franchise, charter, license, articles of association, or otherwise, any plant or equipment, or any part thereof, directly or indirectly for public use for the transportation of passengers or freight; for the conveyance or transmission of telecommunications messages; for the furnishing of facilities for the transmission of intelligence by electricity within the State or between points within the State by land, water, or air; for the production, conveyance, transmission, delivery, or furnishing of light, power, heat, cold, water, gas, or oil; for the storage or warehousing of goods; or for the disposal of sewage; provided that the term shall include:

          (A)  An owner or operator of a private sewer company or sewer facility; and

          (B)  A telecommunications carrier or telecommunications common carrier; and

     (2)  Shall not include:

          (A)  An owner or operator of an aerial transportation enterprise;

          (B)  An owner or operator of a taxicab as defined in this section;

          (C)  Common carriers that transport only freight on the public highways, unless operating within localities, along routes, or between points that the public utilities commission finds to be inadequately serviced without regulation under this chapter;

          (D)  Persons engaged in the business of warehousing or storage unless the commission finds that regulation is necessary in the public interest;

          (E)  A carrier by water to the extent that the carrier enters into private contracts for towage, salvage, hauling, or carriage between points within the State; provided that the towing, salvage, hauling, or carriage is not pursuant to either an established schedule or an undertaking to perform carriage services on behalf of the public generally;

          (F)  A carrier by water, substantially engaged in interstate or foreign commerce, that transports passengers on luxury cruises between points within the State or on luxury round-trip cruises returning to the point of departure;

          (G)  Any user, owner, or operator of the Hawaii electric system as defined under section 269-141;

          (H)  A telecommunications provider only to the extent determined by the public utilities commission pursuant to section 269-16.9;

          (I)  Any person who controls, operates, or manages plants or facilities developed pursuant to chapter 167 for conveying, distributing, and transmitting water for irrigation and other purposes for public use and purpose;

          (J)  Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages plants or facilities for the reclamation of wastewater; provided that:

              (i)  The services of the facility are provided pursuant to a service contract between the person and a state or county agency and at least ten per cent of the wastewater processed is used directly by the state or county agency that entered into the service contract;

             (ii)  The primary function of the facility is the processing of secondary treated wastewater that has been produced by a municipal wastewater treatment facility owned by a state or county agency;

            (iii)  The facility does not make sales of water to residential customers;

             (iv)  The facility may distribute and sell recycled or reclaimed water to entities not covered by a state or county service contract; provided that, in the absence of regulatory oversight and direct competition, the distribution and sale of recycled or reclaimed water shall be voluntary and its pricing fair and reasonable.  For purposes of this subparagraph, "recycled water" and "reclaimed water" means treated wastewater that by design is intended or used for a beneficial purpose; and

              (v)  The facility is not engaged, either directly or indirectly, in the processing of food wastes;

          (K)  Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages any seawater air conditioning district cooling project; provided that at least fifty per cent of the energy required for the seawater air conditioning district cooling system is provided by a renewable energy resource, such as cold, deep seawater;

          (L)  Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages plants or facilities primarily used to charge or discharge a vehicle battery that provides power for vehicle propulsion;

          (M)  Any person who:

              (i)  Owns, controls, operates, or manages a renewable energy system that is located on a customer's property; and

             (ii)  Provides, sells, or transmits the power generated from that renewable energy system to an electric utility or to the customer on whose property the renewable energy system is located; provided that, for purposes of this subparagraph, a customer's property shall include all contiguous property owned or leased by the customer without regard to interruptions in contiguity caused by easements, public thoroughfares, transportation rights-of-way, and utility rights-of-way; [and]

          (N)  Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages a renewable energy system that is located on the person's property and provides, sells, or transmits the power generated from that renewable energy system to an electric utility or to lessees or tenants on the person's property where the renewable energy system is located; provided that:

              (i)  An interconnection, as defined in section 269-141, is maintained with an electric public utility to preserve the lessees' or tenants' ability to be served by an electric utility;

             (ii)  The person does not use an electric public utility's transmission or distribution lines to provide, sell, or transmit electricity to lessees or tenants;

            (iii)  At the time that the lease agreement is signed, the rate charged to the lessee or tenant for the power generated by the renewable energy system shall be no greater than the effective rate charged per kilowatt hour from the applicable electric utility schedule filed with the public utilities commission;

             (iv)  The rate schedule or formula shall be established for the duration of the lease, and the lease agreement entered into by the lessee or tenant shall reflect the rate schedule or formula;

              (v)  The lease agreement shall not abrogate any terms or conditions of applicable tariffs for termination of services for nonpayment of electric utility services or rules regarding health, safety, and welfare; and

             (vi)  The lease agreement shall disclose:  (1) the rate schedule or formula for the duration of the lease agreement; (2) that, at the time that the lease agreement is signed, the rate charged to the lessee or tenant for the power generated by the renewable energy system shall be no greater than the effective rate charged per kilowatt hour from the applicable electric utility schedule filed with the public utilities commission; (3) that the lease agreement shall not abrogate any terms or conditions of applicable tariffs for termination of services for nonpayment of electric utility services or rules regarding health, safety, and welfare; and (4) whether the lease is contingent upon the purchase of electricity from the renewable energy system; provided further that any disputes concerning the requirements of this provision shall be resolved pursuant to the provisions of the lease agreement or chapter 521, if applicable[.]; and

          (O)  Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages a portable solar generation device that is located on the person's property.

     If the application of this chapter is ordered by the commission in any case provided in paragraph (2)(C), (D), (H), and (I), the business of any public utility that presents evidence of bona fide operation on the date of the commencement of the proceedings resulting in the order shall be presumed to be necessary to the public convenience and necessity, but any certificate issued under this proviso shall nevertheless be subject to terms and conditions as the public utilities commission may prescribe, as provided in sections 269-16.9 and 269-20."

     3.  By amending the definition of "renewable energy system" to read:

     ""Renewable energy system" means any identifiable facility, equipment, apparatus, or the like that converts renewable energy, as defined in section 269-91, to useful thermal or electrical energy for heating, cooling, or reducing the use of other types of energy that are dependent on fossil fuel for their generation.  "Renewable energy system" does not include a portable solar generation device as defined in this section."

     SECTION 4.  Section 269-101, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending the definition of "eligible customer-generator" to read as follows:

     ""Eligible customer-generator" means a metered residential or commercial customer, including a government entity, of an electric utility who owns and operates a solar, wind turbine, biomass, or hydroelectric energy generating facility, or a hybrid system consisting of two or more of these facilities, that is:

     (1)  Located on the customer's premises;

     (2)  Operated in parallel with the utility's transmission and distribution facilities;

     (3)  In conformance with the utility's interconnection requirements; and

     (4)  Intended primarily to offset part or all of the customer's own electrical requirements.

"Eligible customer-generator" does not include a portable solar generation device as defined in section 269-1."

     SECTION 5.  Section 514B-140, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:

     "(c)  Subject to the provisions of the declaration, nonmaterial additions to or alterations of the common elements or units, including, without limitation, additions to or alterations of a unit made within the unit or within a limited common element appurtenant to and for the exclusive use of the unit, shall require approval only by the board, which shall not unreasonably withhold the approval, and such percentage, number, or group of unit owners as may be required by the declaration or bylaws; provided that:

     (1)  The installation of solar energy devices by owners of condominium units shall be allowed upon written consent of the board; and

     (2)  The installation of solar energy devices shall be allowed on single-family residential dwellings or townhouses pursuant to the provisions in section 196‑7.

     As used in this subsection:

     "Building-applied photovoltaic" means any new identifiable facility, equipment, apparatus, or the like, which turns solar energy into electric energy and is applied to the outside of a building, such as roof-mounted photovoltaic solar panels.

     "Building-integrated photovoltaic" means any new identifiable facility, equipment, apparatus, or the like, which generates electricity from solar energy and is integrated into the structural elements of a building, such as photovoltaic windows and skylights.

     "Nonmaterial additions and alterations" means an addition to or alteration of the common elements or a unit that does not jeopardize the soundness or safety of the property, reduce the value thereof, impair any easement, detract from the appearance of the project, interfere with or deprive any nonconsenting owner of the use or enjoyment of any part of property, or directly affect any nonconsenting owner.

     "Passive solar skylights or windows" means any skylight or window that regulates heating and cooling but does not generate electricity from solar energy.

     "Solar energy device" means any new identifiable facility, equipment, apparatus, or the like which makes use of solar energy for heating, cooling, or reducing the use of other types of energy dependent upon fossil fuel for its generation, including but not limited to all types of building-applied photovoltaics and building-integrated photovoltaics; provided that if the equipment sold cannot be used as a solar device without its incorporation with other equipment, it shall be installed in place and be ready to be made operational in order to qualify as a "solar energy device"[; provided further that "solar].  "Solar energy device" includes a portable solar generation device as defined in section 269-1.  "Solar energy device" shall not include passive solar skylights or windows.

     "Townhouse" means a series of individual houses, having architectural unity and a common wall between each unit; provided that each unit extends from the ground to the roof."

     SECTION 6.  The public utilities commission shall submit biannual progress reports on the use of portable solar generation devices to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular sessions of 2027 and 2028 and no later than twenty days after the adjournment sine die of the regular sessions of 2027 and 2028.  The reports shall include but not be limited to:

     (1)  The number of portable solar generation devices registered with the commission;

     (2)  Any problems encountered by registrants and electric utility companies; and

     (3)  The commission's findings, recommendations, and any proposed legislation.

     SECTION 7.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 8.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2026.

 

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

 

 

 

Report Title:

PUC; Portable Solar Generation Device; Condominiums; Requirements; Registration; Online System; Reports

 

Description:

Defines "portable solar generation device" and establishes certain requirements for their regulation and use exclusively within units in condominiums organized pursuant to Chapter 514B, HRS.  Requires the Public Utilities Commission to establish an online registration system.  Clarifies that portable solar generation devices are subject to certain approval procedures for installation in condominiums.  Requires reports to the Legislature.

 

 

 

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