[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6297900,"mediaKeyId","2506070-a7a707b6c93dd456e0f283ace1e87803","parentId",2506070,"title","Committee hears bill limiting HOA bans on solar panels; debate centers on shared roofs, litigation costs and governance","audioSeconds",1369,"startMs",1764000,"endMs",3133000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2506070-a7a707b6c93dd456e0f283ace1e87803&start=1764&end=3133","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2506070-a7a707b6c93dd456e0f283ace1e87803/thumbnail_1764000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6297900/Georgia/Committee-hears-bill-limiting-HOA-bans-on-solar-panels-debate-centers-on-shared-roofs-litigation-costs-and-governance","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6297900-a23a0b94453de8040ea75dbd9b574173/orig.mp4?Expires=1770722123&Signature=lQdJl72xpE3SrjvHD3yo17hWvmIrFnzVnF2vX1LiXlp3TFy6P1JxvYLHIG9Nyi7cdfv6z83INWK0qQ7G~6HWQeDuVg1eNHsOwB~8UDO39zodM-a36jkHXU-5QgI4R4-HIZQolwTxCu5HcX2zskYnmvi87jcOO4-beY8t0PObeqH13zU7as8k4Fl~3wER7EvvesWoaHIsUY5wGKqI5fUtpPHdLhu4xtA8fzjLEMJzZJxS-Jmnodo382Yfj-hvJo7FSho7FoXatDdM1hFUYSLAzbZV6UH~smXOXwbkZRE5idlOFr1lR55~-Is3CEwVtGOSBr7GXcfmSupu77SiG383sA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Georgia State Legislature","date","2025-03-05T00:00:00Z","article","Representative Michael Bell introduced House Bill 389 on Thursday, a measure that would prohibit homeowners associations from broadly banning rooftop solar while allowing associations to deny panels that fail to meet stated aesthetic criteria or are not on the home structure.

Bell said the bill is intended to prevent HOAs from blocking access to solar for homeowners while preserving some local aesthetic controls. The text allows HOAs to refuse a particular panel if it ‘‘doesn't fit the aesthetic of the community or it's not actually on the roof of the home structure or behind a privacy fence,’' according to the presenter.

Committee members pressed Bell and asked several procedural and policy questions. Representative Kelly asked how the homeowner would apply to their HOA and what recourse a homeowner would have if an HOA denied a request; Bell repeatedly answered that processes differ across associations and that disputes could be resolved in court under existing covenants and bylaws. Members explored a hypothetical in which HOA litigation costs — for example, a scenario cited in the hearing of a $100,000 litigation expense spread across 100 homes — could result in assessments that shift costs to all homeowners.

Several members raised broader governance issues. Representative Roman described difficulties in some neighborhoods where investor-owned properties and professional management companies make it hard to get quorum for covenant changes; she said that in parts of the state investor ownership and management-company control have impaired ordinary HOA processes. Others reiterated that buyers should review covenants and that HOA rules are private agreements but noted the Legislature has in other contexts regulated private contracts.

Shelby Purdue, representing the Georgia Community Associations Institute, testified against House Bill 389 as drafted. She said CAI does not oppose energy-efficiency or renewable-energy goals but that the bill's language risks permitting installations on common property and could create a mechanism whereby costs from one owner's actions are spread to all association members. CAI urged recognition of the governance and contractual obligations of community associations and said residents and boards are generally the best mechanism to implement energy policies locally.

Chair members said there are technical and substantive issues to address and that the subcommittee would not take further action on the bill during the current meeting. A motion to table the bill was made and briefly seconded but then withdrawn; the chair stated the bill would remain in committee and could be revisited next year. No roll-call vote on the bill was recorded in the transcript.

The hearing captured a mix of policy, consumer-protection and homeowner-governance concerns rather than a clearpath to immediate committee approval.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","03.05.2025 Energy, Utilities, & Telecommunications","oneSentenceSummary","Representative Michael Bell introduced House Bill 389 to limit homeowners associations' ability to ban rooftop solar, but the subcommittee did not vote after extended questioning and testimony from the Georgia Community Associations Institute.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature Georgia , Georgia","taxId",77688,"location","Georgia","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6297906,"Panel approves requirement for financial assurance before utility-scale solar operates",227,1499000,1726000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2506070-a7a707b6c93dd456e0f283ace1e87803&start=1499&end=1726","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2506070-a7a707b6c93dd456e0f283ace1e87803/thumbnail_1499000.jpg","/articles/6297906/Georgia/Panel-approves-requirement-for-financial-assurance-before-utility-scale-solar-operates","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6297906-8d5d7d01a4c8276215a051d5cb28d4e7/orig.mp4?Expires=1770722123&Signature=Bm2oHHlcF~H~M57YeziNGxncff2QE6~bu330J4PkqxuPAaRL8-NjSkjSB7-mhumEHppEe~1lePB9zn6q-4FPlM30b4BiYl5VMYmNFvLcPze-ZneSOV9bMvFTWhCQfWGcqcKl6ppDaLgkOI-s7IdCnopbPrcfpd4MNJGPlYr-a6J2k4nKPrMd6MufaBmgD7LXUlCLHzGYKOhFaifHZ1GeU04yn-lojiN7CoRGcH7lhalCqCIcqYqz2AHw9YiLjbNVxKXpcG8QeKFJe2CQ6tIn-zAX-KvcojvBf6JxEhskedr8pEFVjGD0EFmvlexCMJ921tPDThR78NFOQZNx3yp0Lg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The House Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications Subcommittee on Thursday approved a committee substitute to House Bill 249 (LC 550584S) requiring developers of solar facilities to provide evidence to the Georgia Environmental Protection Division that they have a financial instrument to cover decommissioning costs before the projects begin operation.

Supporters said the measure builds on prior legislation intended to ensure developers bear the cost of restoring land at the end of a solar facility's useful life. The presenting member said the bill is modeled on a provision in Representative Kelly's bill from last year and added that state agencies and stakeholders offered technical suggestions in recent weeks, including individuals at the Environmental Protection Division and the Public Service Commission.

Under the bill, EPD would receive documentation showing that an operator has the financial ability to decommission a facility; the presenter pointed to a provision near lines 167–168 of the bill text that spells out that requirement. Committee members were told the change imposes little additional work on either regulators or developers beyond providing proof that arrangements exist to restore sites to their prior condition.

There was no public testimony and no substantive questions that blocked the measure. The subcommittee moved to approve the committee substitute for House Bill 249 (LC 550584S) by voice vote; the chair announced the bill passed. The transcript does not record a roll-call tally or the names of the member(s) who moved or seconded the motion.

The bill leaves the subcommittee approved version ready for further processing in the House; the committee did not record additional amendments during this meeting.

Because the committee action was a voice vote, the record does not list individual member votes.","The House Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications Subcommittee approved a committee substitute to House Bill 249 (LC 550584S) requiring operators to show environmental regulators proof of a financial instrument to cover decommissioning of utility-scale solar facilities before beginning operation.","actionData","errors"]

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Committee hears bill limiting HOA bans on solar panels; debate centers on shared roofs, litigation costs and governance

Panel approves requirement for financial assurance before utility-scale solar operates