Solar permitting — Howard County, Maryland
4 indexed meetings (4 energy-related), 9 news items, 5 known opposition groups.
Wealthiest MD county; dense suburban growth; agricultural preservation program restricts utility-scale; limite. Permitting: County Board of Appeals/Board of Commissioners: Special Exception or Conditional Use Permi; 150-ft max / 1…
Key driver: Wealthiest MD county; dense suburban growth; agricultural preservation program restricts utility-scale; limited available land; community solar and commercial active
Permitting process
Local permitting pathway
County Board of Appeals/Board of Commissioners: Special Exception or Conditional Use Permit in applicable zoning district.
Setbacks & buffers
State floor per HB1036/SB931 (eff. Jul 1 2025): ≤100 ft from property lines; ≤150 ft from non-participating residences. No county-specific setbacks above state floor.
Spacing requirements
None codified
Size restrictions
None codified; managed via CUP/SUP conditions
Penalties & bonding
No penalties or adjustments. Standard CUP/SUP process.
State-level permits & approvals
Local county zoning permit: conditional use or special exception at county level; no uniform statewide solar permitting standard. PPRP (Power Plant Research Program, MD DNR): environmental review for generating facilities ≥70 MW; PSC CPCN required for projects ≥70 MW. Projects <70 MW: county-level permitting only. No statewide preemption of local solar ordinances. Net metering: systems up to 2 MW (residential up to 2× annual load). All MD in PJM territory. Maryland has the largest solar carve-out in the U.S. at 14.5% by 2028 (MD Code, PUC §7-703).
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State policy & grid context
State RPS & clean energy policy
50% by 2030 (14.5% solar carve-out) | Clean Energy Jobs Act (2019) + CESA (2022) | Md. Code Ann. PUA §7-703
State incentive programs
Maryland Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS): 50% by 2030; solar carve-out 14.5% by 2028 — drives strong SREC demand. Maryland SREC market: PSC-administered; ~$50-80/SREC 2023-2024 for Tier 1 Maryland SRECs. Maryland Solar Access Program (Brighter Tomorrow Act 2024): $750/kW up to $7,500 for income-qualifying residential customers. Maryland Community Solar: community solar program active statewide. Maryland PSC: approval required for utility-owned solar; IPP projects via county/local process. Utility: BGE (Eversource) serves Baltimore metro; Pepco serves Montgomery/PG County; Delmarva Power serves Eastern Shore; SMECO serves Southern MD; Potomac Edison (FirstEnergy) serves western MD.
Grid & interconnection
PJM / BGE (Exelon) transmission zone
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Battery storage (BESS) P1 State-Default Permitting
No confirmed county BESS ordinance.
Local BESS ordinances & bylaws
County-level battery-storage status, safety requirements, and projects — each linked to a primary source.
Community opposition P1 5 tracked
Organized opposition signals on record for this county — petitions, community groups, and oppositional coverage — each linked to its primary source.
- Howard County's data center moratorium inches closer to reality Data center
- Howard County implements moratorium on data center ... Data center
- Howard County commissioners OK 180-day moratorium on battery energy storage systems Storage
- Howard County Council unanimously approves temporary ban on data center development Data center
- Support Community Solar in Howard County Solar
SitePath maintains the most complete community-opposition dataset available, refreshed continuously from primary sources.
Subscriber intel Subscribers
Researched for this county and available with a subscription:
- 🔒Project track record
- 🔒Developer intelligence
- 🔒Community & board sentiment
- 🔒Governing board
- 🔒Sentiment rollup
Energy-related meetings & dockets P1
Halo color = sentiment of the relevant agenda excerpt: green positive, yellow neutral, red negative.
- OtherSolar
Calvin Ball Howard County Executive CB 17-2021 expands opportunities for solar within the county to: Allow rooftop solar collectors in all zoning districts Allow ground-mount Commercial Solar Facilities (CSFs) in more zoning districts, spec
- OtherSolar
Skip to main content Menu Main Content Renewable Energy Certainty Act (HB1036) Effective July 1, 2025, Maryland’s Renewable Energy Certainty Act (HB1036) introduced new rules for solar energy projects under the state’s Land Use Article.
- OtherSolar
The Howard County Agricultural Land Preservation Board will review and approve or deny applications for commercial solar facilities on land with an easement.
- OtherSolar
Solar Submission Procedure To submit a Commercial Solar Facilities (CSF) Conditional Use (CU) Petition to the Agricultural Preservation Board (APB), please carefully review the Department of Planning and Zoning Policy below before submittin
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State PSC dockets P1
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
Local news P3
- 2026-03-13 State Roundup Lawmakers Tackle Moores Budget 1 4B Shortfall Sweeping Energy Reform Bill Heads To House Floor Sewage Overflows Lead To…
- 2026-03-05 As Data Centers Multiply Marylands Power Grid Struggles To Keep Up
- 2026-01-23 Calvin Ball Howard Solar
- 2025-09-04 Senate Pres Bill Ferguson Faces Heat Over Energy Company Ties There Is A Solar Grift
- 2025-08-08 State Roundup Another Purple Line Problem Floods Apartments States Scramble To Complete Renewable Energy Projects Oc Challenges Wind Permit…
- 2025-08-05 Farmers Concernedmaryland Solar Law
- 2025-08-05 Albert Pike Statue Reinstalled Trump Nuclear Reactor Moon
- 2025-08-05 Why Farmers Concerned Solar Legislation 045441312
- 2025-07-17 Howard County Farm Becomes Net Zero Energy Facility
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