As the state races to install solar photovoltaics to meet its Million Solar Roofs mandate, it is ignoring a 30-year-old legal precedent. That law may come back to haunt those who install panels if neighbors start disputing the installations. "Buyer beware," said Scott Anders, University of San Diego Energy Policy Initiatives Center executive director. "These are old laws. What's new is figuring out how to apply these laws in the new situation." The new California Solar Initiative does not seek to enforce the Solar Rights Act, the law at issue, according to Terrie Prosper, California Public Utilities Commission spokesperson. Instead, state agencies are attempting to educate cities about how to become solar-friendly. The 1978 Solar Rights Act ensures the right of homeowners to install solar systems as long as they comply with technical standards and do not jeopardize health and safety. Solar rights also extend to owners in properties, such as town home developments, controlled under homeowners' association covenants, conditions, and restrictions. The act outlines the right to work out easements too. To give the state leverage over cities to make sure their building codes are solar-friendly, the act further specifies that before cities and counties can receive state incentive payments for solar systems on public buildings, they must certify that their requirements comply with the law. This means they must not place any restrictions on solar systems within their boundaries beyond those authorized under the Solar Rights Act. However, the California Solar Initiative, a.k.a. Million Solar Roofs, does not require cities to make such a certification before qualifying for incentive payments for photovoltaic panels on public buildings, according to Prosper. The lack of such requirements in the solar initiative illustrates Anders's conclusion that few Californians are aware of the law. He is urging the state agencies and utilities that administer solar incentive money, as well as solar installers, to become familiar with the law to head off potential problems as the initiative picks up. Likewise, he said, buyers need to be sure that they understand and negotiate any needed easements so the sun will continue to shine on their systems. However, such easements are not required to qualify for incentive payments under the state solar initiative, said Prosper, despite the fact that the lack of the agreements may diminish the efficiency of rooftop solar systems when neighbors build up or plant trees that cast shade. The lack of case law under the act stems from both the cost of litigating solar rights and the comparatively small number of systems that state residents have installed. Anders released a study on the issue January 24. It can be found at www.sandiego.edu/epic. - William J. Kelly