Subcommittee advances bill requiring pre-certification for solar decommissioning; 10-day window lengthened to 30

A House Energy, Utilities & Telecommunications subcommittee advanced House Bill 249 as amended, requiring a pre-installation certification that a solar panel facility agreement contains financial assurance for decommissioning and assigning the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) a role in reviewing those assurances.

Chairman Robert Dickey presented the bill to the special subcommittee convened to consider solar decommissioning legislation, saying the measure "adds another layer of assurance" to last year’s legislation and is intended to prevent the state or private landowners from shouldering cleanup costs decades after a project reaches end-of-life. Dickey said he has been in contact with EPD about the division serving as the entity that would review documents before construction…