Solar permitting — McCormick County, South Carolina
0 indexed meetings (0 energy-related), 0 PSC dockets, 0 news items, 9 known opposition groups.
⛔ ACTIVE MORATORIUM — Active Moratorium; moratorium expires —confirm expiration with county planning. Permitting: CUP via McCormick County Planning Board; 150-ft max / 50-ft min setbacks. Track record: McCormick Solar (~18 MW, 2022, Aiken Electric Cooperative PPA). Political environment: Republican
Key driver: McCormick earns B grade as SC's smallest and least-populated county — regulatory barriers are low, the council is receptive, and the economic case for solar lease income is compelling; moderate setback requirements near lake buffers are the only notable constraint; one operating project confirms viability
Permitting process
Local permitting pathway
CUP via McCormick County Planning Board; County Council approval for >5 MW
Setbacks & buffers
150 ft from residential structures; 100 ft from lake or stream buffers; 50 ft from road ROW; 50 ft from property lines
Spacing requirements
Not specified
Size restrictions
None codified; managed via CUP/SUP conditions
Penalties & bonding
Total penalty: +28 | Active moratorium: +28
State-level permits & approvals
County zoning authority; no state solar preemption; special exception or conditional use permit typically required for utility-scale (>1 MW); decommissioning bond increasingly required
State policy & grid context
State RPS & clean energy policy
No binding RPS | None | Energy Freedom Act (2019) addresses solar but no state RPS
State incentive programs
Federal ITC eligible; SC state income tax credit for solar (25% up to $35,000 for commercial); SC Energy Freedom Act net metering provisions
Grid & interconnection
SERC-SE; Duke Energy Carolinas
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Researched for this county and available with a subscription:
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Energy-related meetings & dockets P1
No meetings indexed yet for this jurisdiction.
State PSC dockets P1
No PSC dockets matched to this county yet.
Local news P3
News ingestion not yet active for this county (GDELT/RSS pipeline pending).
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