What are my rights...
regarding access to the sun?
Solar Access
State laws in California protect homeowner's access to the sun for solar systems.
A portion of the Warren-Alquist Act - Public Resources Code Section 25980-25986, the Solar Shade Control Act, states:
"...It is the policy of the state to promote all feasible means of energy conservation and all feasible uses of alternative energy supply sources. In particular, the state encourages the planting and maintenance of trees and shrubs to create shading, moderate outdoor temperatures, and provide various economic and aesthetic benefits. However, there are certain situations in which the need for widespread use of alternative energy devices, such as solar collectors, requires specific and limited controls on trees and shrubs."
Solar and CC&Rs
According to the U.S. Department of Energy's report Bringing Solar Energy to the Planned Community: A Handbook on Rooftop Solar Systems and Private Land Use Restrictions, many homes today are part of planned communities which require a uniform and consistent appearance within the development.
According to the Community Association Institute's 1999 Factbook, 42 million Americans now live in community associations.
The number of community associations has burgeoned from 10,000 in 1970 to over 200,000 today.
Unfortunately, planned communities could limit the growth in the use of solar energy.
The report says, "The problem arises in the context of the association's architectural controls, commonly found in its declaration of covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs). The developer creates these CC&Rs to ensure the uniform appearance and preserve the 'curb appeal' of the project throughout its construction and build-out phase. After the development phase is completed, the responsibility for interpreting and enforcing the architectural controls is passed onto a Homeowner Association and its Architectural Review Committee made up of elected members of the community. In the hands of an overzealous ARC, CC&Rs can become a straightjacket to solar development."
You can download this report as an Adobe Acrobat PDF file (62 pages, 1.0 MB)
If you have questions regarding solar access or how covenants, codes and restrictions may limit you from installing solar, please check with your legal advisor or attorney, county building officials, or your solar equipment installer.