Solar permitting — Steuben County, Indiana

Setbacks & buffers

IC 8-1-42-10 default standards, measured as a straight line from the nearest outer edge of the solar panels: 50 ft to the property line of any NON-PARTICIPATING property; 250 ft to the outer wall of a dwelling on non-participating property (a landscape buffer is required within that distance); and to the nearest edge of the right-of-way, 40 ft for an interstate, federal, state or county highway, 30 ft for a collector road, 10 ft for a local road. Panels capped at 25 ft at full tilt. Setback and buffer requirements are waivable with the written consent of each affected non-participating owner. A decommissioning surety bond is required under IC 8-1-42-18 — NOTE: the distances above are a STATE-level fallback, not a figure read from this county's own ordinance. We hold siting-rule records for this county which may include a stricter local limit we have not yet extracted. Verify against the county's own ordinance before relying on these.

Spacing requirements

None codified.

Size restrictions

None codified.

Penalties & bonding

No penalties or adjustments. Standard CUP/SUP process.

State-level permits & approvals

Local permit: Special Exception (SE) in A-1 Agricultural zoning via county Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA); some counties use two-step process (Plan Commission recommendation + BZA approval). BZA SE is the standard county-level pathway for all utility-scale solar. IURC CPCN: Indiana Code §8-1-8.5 — IURC Certificate of Public Convenience & Necessity (Cause No.) required for generating facilities >80 MW; process runs parallel to county BZA SE and does not replace it. IURC approval does NOT override a county BZA denial except where federal jurisdiction applies (see Mammoth Solar / Pulaski County precedent, 2023). IC 36-7-4: Indiana Code §36-7-4 limits how restrictive county ordinances can be for solar; basis for developer preemption litigation against overly restrictive ordinances (Randolph County 2024 litigation pending). SB 411 (2022): Voluntary 'solar-ready county' designation for counties meeting solar-friendly siting standards. SB 390 (2023): $1/MWh financial incentive for solar-ready counties.

State incentive programs

Indiana Renewable Energy law (IURC): no Renewable Portfolio Standard — Indiana repealed its RPS (HB 1271, effective 2023). Net metering: available for ≤1 MW retail customer generation (IURC regulated utilities); Indiana Michigan Power (AEP), Duke Energy Indiana, Vectren/CenterPoint, NIPSCO offer programs. IURC CPCN: required for generating facilities ≥80 MW. HEA 1381 (2022): counties retain siting authority for solar in unincorporated areas. No state cash incentive program for solar. Utility: Duke Energy Indiana serves central/eastern IN; NIPSCO (NiSource) serves NW IN (Cook/Lake/Porter); Indiana Michigan Power (AEP) serves northeastern IN; Vectren/CenterPoint serves SW IN; REMC cooperatives serve rural areas.

Grid & interconnection

MISO / Duke Energy Indiana or Indiana Michigan Power (I&M) zone (verify by project location)