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Louisiana House debates statewide solar siting standards; amended bill fails
Summary
Lawmakers spent hours debating a bill to set statewide siting, setback and decommissioning standards for large solar projects and to give the Department of Energy and Natural Resources primary permitting authority. The House adopted amendments but rejected final passage of House Bill 6 15.
Representative Sam Guymon, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, told the House that House Bill 6 15 would create statewide standards for large-scale solar projects and give the Department of Energy and Natural Resources (DENR) the permitting role now handled unevenly by local parishes. "The permitting would be at the state level at D E and R, Department of Energy and Natural Resources," Guymon said during his floor presentation.
The bill’s authors and supporters framed the measure as an attempt to replace a patchwork of parish ordinances with a single, predictable standard. Guymon said the bill would require decommissioning financial assurance, set siting minimums and create a process for local governments to request waivers. He told members the measure grew from a year of stakeholder meetings with the University of Louisiana, LSU’s Center for Energy Studies, utilities and county officials.
The bill’s principal provisions, as amended on the floor, included a…
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