Can a California HOA ban rooftop solar?

What the statewide rule protects

California Civil Code section 714 says a covenant, restriction, condition, or governing-document
provision that effectively prohibits or restricts the installation or use of a solar energy system
is void and unenforceable. The same section allows reasonable restrictions that do not
significantly increase the system's cost or significantly reduce its efficiency or specified
performance, or that allow an alternative system of comparable cost, efficiency, and
energy-conservation benefits.

For photovoltaic systems, section 714 uses $1,000 in added cost and a 10 percent decrease in
system efficiency as its statutory benchmarks. Ask the installer to put the cost and expected
performance of the proposed system — and of any HOA-requested alternative — in writing so the two
designs can be compared.

A solar installation must still comply with applicable state and local health and safety
requirements, permitting rules, electrical standards, and utility safety and reliability rules.
HOA approval does not replace those requirements.

How long the HOA has to respond

When HOA approval is required, the application must be handled like an architectural-modification
request and must not be willfully avoided or delayed. The approval or denial must be in writing.
If the association does not deny the application in writing within 45 days after receiving it,
section 714 says the application is deemed approved unless the delay resulted from a reasonable
request for additional information.

Keep proof of the date the HOA received the application, any reasonable request for additional
information, and the date any additional information was provided. Do not assume that deemed HOA
approval is a building permit or permission to skip electrical, structural, fire, utility, or
contractor requirements.

What an HOA may still require

Civil Code section 714.1 allows reasonable provisions that limit common-area installations to
systems the association approves; require association approval before one owner installs a system
in another owner's separate interest; provide for maintenance, repair, or replacement of roofs or
other building components; and require installers to indemnify or reimburse the association or
its members for installation-, maintenance-, or use-related loss or damage.

It also says an association may not establish a general policy prohibiting a household rooftop
solar system on the roof of the building where the owner lives, or on an adjacent garage or
carport assigned for that owner's exclusive use. For those installations, it also may not require
approval by a vote of members who own separate interests, including the vote specified by section
4600. An association action that violates either prohibition is void and unenforceable.

If the proposed system would be installed on a multifamily common-area roof shared by more than
one homeowner, Civil Code section 4746 requires the association to require the applicant to notify
each owner of a unit in the building. It must also require the owner and each successive owner to
maintain homeowner liability coverage at all times, provide the insurance certificate within 14
days after approval, and provide it annually thereafter.

The association may impose additional reasonable provisions requiring a solar site survey prepared
by a licensed contractor or the contractor's registered salesperson knowledgeable about solar
installation. The survey must determine usable solar roof area and an equitable allocation of that
area among all owners sharing the same roof, garage, or carport. The survey or costs of
determining usable space do not count as system cost under section 714. The association may also
require the owner and each successive owner to bear the specified costs of damage, system
maintenance, repair and replacement until removal, and restoration after removal, and to disclose
the system and related responsibilities to prospective buyers.

Facts that could change the answer

• Whether the roof is your separate interest, exclusive-use common area, or multifamily common
  area changes which statutory provisions apply.
• Whether a restriction is “reasonable” under section 714's benchmarks depends on the specific
  cost, efficiency, and performance figures.
• Whether the 45-day clock ran depends on the application date, any reasonable request for
  additional information, and when the information was provided.
• Local permitting, electrical, structural, fire, and utility requirements are independent of HOA
  approval and always remain in force.
• Whether a violation was willful, and the amount of any damages, depends on the facts.

Practical decision path

1. Identify the roof or area for the system and confirm its ownership or control.
2. Obtain the governing documents and any solar or architectural-application requirements in
   writing.
3. Submit the application with layout, equipment, cost, expected performance, and contractor
   information, and keep proof of delivery.
4. Compare any HOA-requested alternative against the statutory benchmarks.
5. Obtain the written decision; if none arrives within 45 days, preserve the record before
   relying on deemed approval.
6. Complete permitting, electrical, structural, fire, utility, and contractor steps separately.

If there is a dispute

Start with the documents: the application, proof of receipt, the written decision or request for
more information, the governing provision, and the installer's cost-and-performance comparison.

Civil Code section 714 says a nonpublic entity that willfully violates the section is liable for
actual damages caused by the violation and a civil penalty of up to $1,000. It separately says the
prevailing party in an action to enforce compliance shall be awarded reasonable attorney's fees.
Whether a violation was willful or a restriction was reasonable depends on the facts.

Consider advice from a California attorney familiar with common interest developments before
relying on a deemed approval, starting work over an objection, or pursuing a claim.