City of Ontario

A city address is usually permitted by the city, not the county — but not always, and some authorities keep building and hand electrical to someone else. Getting this wrong costs the whole submittal, because every requirement below belongs to whoever actually holds jurisdiction. Check the overlays in the same pass: an HOA, a historic district, a windstorm certification or a system-size cap can reshape the design, and all of them are cheaper to find now than after the array is laid out.

• Is this authority the AHJ for residential solar at this address? Yes 95% · ordinance
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? Both 90% · department bulletin
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes 95% · ordinance
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Combined 70% · department bulletin
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? No 70% · ordinance
• Is there a historic-district review? Yes - but only for a designated historic resource 80% · development code
• Is a wind or windstorm certification required? No 80% · ordinance
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? No. OMC 8-8.04 requires an 'administrative, nondiscretionary review process' and limits review to health and safety, so no Specific Use Permit, Conditional Use Permit or Council action arises for a residential rooftop system. Development Code 5.03.160 (Electric Power Generation, Solar and Wind) does gate STANDALONE solar generation facilities - NAICS 221114/221115 - to the CIV, IH and UC districts or to an ancillary role beside a permitted use, but that is the utility-scale/industrial land use, not a rooftop array on a house. 85% · development code
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? No cap on generation. Two thresholds change the PROCESS, not the permitted size: OMC 8-8.02 defines a 'small residential rooftop solar energy system' as no larger than 10 kW AC nameplate (or 30 kW thermal), on a single or duplex dwelling, with the array not exceeding the maximum legal building height - that is the class entitled to the three-business-day expedited review; and IB 111/IB 116 set 38.4 kW as the ceiling for the streamlined and real-time routes, above which 'roof mounted solar systems greater than or equal to 38.4 kW must follow the regular plan check review process'. 85% · ordinance

Several authorities require the electrical permit to be pulled by a licensed electrician, or require the contractor to be registered with them BEFORE applying. Registration is not same-day. This is second on the list rather than fourth because it is the step most likely to stop the job before the drawings matter.

• Who is allowed to pull the electrical permit? Either 85% · department bulletin
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? Yes 70% · department page
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes 90% · department page

Almost everywhere wants a site plan, a one-line or three-line electrical diagram, equipment cut sheets with listings, and a structural attachment detail. Build it against the published checklist rather than the last jurisdiction you worked in — the checklist is what the reviewer marks against.

• What documents make up a complete submittal? On the real-time route (Symbium, systems under 38.4 kW) the applicant answers the Symbium questionnaire and no plan set is uploaded at application - a Citizen Access account is required first, fees are paid, and the permit issues in real time. On the conventional route the published standard plan for one- and two-family dwellings 10 kW or less requires: general project information (address, design professional, owner, system power size, maximum distributed PV weight in psf including modules, rails, attachments and all components, and calculation of the percentage of roof area covered); manufacturer specifications for the racking system, modules, combiner boxes, DC/DC converters (optimizers) and inverters; a site plan; an electrical roof / roof framing plan; a structural mounting detail; an electrical single-line diagram; the completed PV electrical design worksheet; and the markings-and-warning-labels diagrams. IB 200 adds that PV plans (and ESS plans) are 'NOT allowed to be deferred' where required by the energy calculation. 85% · published checklist
• How many copies, and in what format? Standard plan: 'Must submit a minimum of two sets of plans in minimum size sheet of 11' x 17".' IB 200 (Residential Submittal Requirements) instead directs digital upload to the Citizen Portal with plans 'DRAWN DIGITALLY ON 18" X 24" OR LARGER PAGE SIZE'. In practice submission is electronic - IB 111 routes review documents through the Willdan Geocivix portal, and the Electronic Document Review handout says a City-stamped digital set is emailed back for the applicant to print for the field. At issuance the FAQ says two sets are required (job site and Building Department), plus a third set for the county assessor on new buildings or additions. 70% · published checklist
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes. Per the standard plan the site plan must show all existing improvements on the property, the location of the electrical service equipment and all wall-mounted solar PV equipment, the required working clearances in front of the electrical equipment, the property lines, and north orientation. A separate electrical roof / roof framing plan must show array layout and supporting structure, fire department roof access and clearances, roof pitch and slope, micro-inverters, DC/DC converters (optimizers), combiner boxes, junction boxes, raceway layout and routing, DWV vent terminations, gas flue / B-vents, attic air vents and skylights. 85% · published checklist
• Is a one-line / three-line diagram required? Yes 90% · published checklist
• Are string and conductor calculations required? Yes 80% · published checklist
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No blanket stamp for a compliant flush-mount job. The 10 kW standard plan may be used without engineering only within its stated envelope; a structural engineer's stamped design is required once any of these is exceeded: array dead load over 4 psf; roof pitch outside 1/4:12 to 6:12; gap to roof outside 2" to 10"; tilted (non-flush) racking; horizontal attachment spacing over 4 ft or rail cantilever over 18"; roofing other than tile with nothing beneath it, at most two layers of asphalt shingle, or one built-up roof; metal standing-seam, wood shingle or shake roofs; patio covers used to support the array; master PV plans for tracts. IB 200 states the general rule that structural plans must be prepared, stamped and signed by a licensed design professional if the structure does not comply with the conventional-framing limits of the CRC. 85% · published checklist
• Is an electrical PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No electrical PE stamp is required at any threshold for residential work. IB 200 states plainly, under Electrical Plans: 'Note: Electrical plans can be prepared by Unlicensed person.' The standard plan asks only that plans be signed and stamped by the licensed design professional where the Business and Professions Code requires it, and that design-build plans carry the contractor's licence classification, number and signature on each sheet. 85% · department bulletin

Most authorities now take the whole application through a portal, and several states cap or constrain what a residential solar permit may cost. Check whether plan check is billed separately before you quote the job.

• Which permit portal does this authority use? Three, used together: Accela Citizen Access ('Citizen Portal Access') at aca-prod.accela.com/ONT for application, fee payment and inspection scheduling; Symbium for real-time residential solar and ESS permits since 4 Aug 2025; and Willdan Geocivix for plan review and resubmittals on the conventional route. Fees are paid at ontarioca.telleronline.net. 90% · department bulletin
• Can the whole application be completed online? Yes 90% · department bulletin
• How is the fee calculated? Valuation 70% · fee schedule
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? Yes 95% · fee schedule

Interconnection is a separate process from the permit and usually the longer pole. Where the utility does not depend on the permit being issued, running both at once is the single biggest saving available on a residential job.

• What is the stated plan-review turnaround? 3 business days on the conventional expedited route; immediate on the real-time route 85% · ordinance
• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? 180 days (6 months) 80% · department page
• Which utility handles interconnection here? Southern California Edison (SCE) 90% · department form
• Where does the utility sit in the sequence? Parallel 80% · utility interconnection handbook

The NEC edition a jurisdiction enforces is often a cycle behind the newest one published, and local amendments sit on top of it. Rapid shutdown, conductor sizing and labelling all change between editions, so the edition in force is the first thing to establish, not the last.

• Which NEC edition is in force? 2023 95% · ordinance
• Which building code edition is in force? 2025 California Building Code (Title 24 Part 2, Vols 1 and 2) and 2025 California Residential Code (Part 2.5); 2024 IBC/IRC base 95% · ordinance
• Which fire code edition is in force? 2025 California Fire Code with errata, incorporating the 2024 International Fire Code 85% · ordinance
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes 90% · ordinance
• What is the installation judged against? The 2025 California Electrical Code (2023 NEC) as adopted without local amendment by OMC 8-4.01, plus the City's own plan-check and field notes in Information Bulletin 107 (Solar Photovoltaic System and Energy Storage System Notes, effective 1/1/2017, revised 1/1/2026), plus Ontario Fire Department Fire Protection Standard E-006 for marking, access and pathways. IB 107 also imports the OMC 8-1.06 rule that metal conduit may not serve as the equipment ground. 90% · department bulletin

Ridge setbacks and roof access pathways are fire-service requirements and they constrain the array layout. They are the most common cause of a redesign after the fire department comments on a plan set.

• What ridge setback and access pathways are required? Ontario Fire Department Standard E-006 (effective 01-01-2023, Rev. 01-07-2025). RESIDENTIAL (single and two-unit dwellings): hip roofs - one 3 ft wide clear access pathway from eave to ridge on each roof slope where panels are located, at a structurally strong location such as a bearing wall; single-ridge roofs - two 3 ft wide access pathways from eave to ridge on each slope; hips and valleys - panels no closer than 18 inches to a hip or valley where panels sit on both sides, but may be placed directly adjacent where they are on one side only of an equal-length hip or valley; ventilation - panels no higher than 3 ft below the ridge, with an exception permitting 2 ft where the fire department accepts an approved product or method. Designation of ridge, hip and valley does not apply to roofs of 2-in-12 pitch or less; all roof dimensions are measured to centrelines. Fire Department plan review is required if the system will occupy more than 50% of the roof area of a residential building. COMMERCIAL and residential of three or more units (do not apply these to a house): 6 ft clear perimeter, reduced to 4 ft where either building axis is 250 ft or less; centre-line pathways on both axes over structural members; 4 ft clear to skylights, ventilation hatches and roof standpipes; arrays no greater than 150 by 150 ft; 8 ft ventilation pathways between array sections or 4 ft bordering skylights/hatches or 4 ft with 4 ft x 8 ft venting cutouts every 20 ft on alternating sides. 90% · fire department standard

Which rapid-shutdown rule applies follows directly from the NEC edition in force, and the initiation device has to be at a location the fire service can reach and identify. This is inspected, and it is labelled.

• Is rapid shutdown required, and to which NEC edition? Yes - CEC 690.12 as adopted, i.e. the 2023 NEC via the 2025 California Electrical Code 90% · department bulletin

The NEC sets a baseline for permanent markings at the service equipment and the disconnecting means. On top of that, an authority may specify its own wording, and the utility may specify more again. Where any of them writes its own text, a generic off-the-shelf label set will not pass — this is the detail most often fixed on a return visit.

• Which placards does this authority require at the service equipment? Ontario requires a full marking set at and around the service equipment, drawn from three City documents. Ontario Fire Department E-006: a 'CAUTION: SOLAR ELECTRIC SYSTEM CONNECTED' marking at the main service disconnect, and 'CAUTION SOLAR CIRCUIT' on all interior and exterior DC conduit, raceways, enclosures, cable assemblies, junction boxes and DC combiner boxes. IB 107: 'PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER SOURCE' or 'SOLAR PV DC CIRCUIT' on DC raceways and cable assemblies; PV combiner panelboards marked 'DEDICATED FOR PV CIRCUITS ONLY NO LOADS ARE TO BE CONNECTED'; the de-rated main breaker marking 'THE MAIN CIRCUIT BREAKER HAS BEEN DOWNSIZED TO ___ AMPS, DO NOT UPSIZE IT'; ESS terminal disconnect labelling per CEC 706.15; and rapid-shutdown identification per 690.56 and 705.10. The standard plan's marking diagrams add, for central/string systems: 'WARNING INVERTER OUTPUT CONNECTION; DO NOT RELOCATE THIS OVERCURRENT DEVICE'; 'WARNING THIS EQUIPMENT FED BY MULTIPLE SOURCES SECOND SOURCE IS PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEM RATED AC OUTPUT CURRENT ___ AMPS AC NORMAL OPERATING VOLTAGE ___ VOLTS'; 'PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEM EQUIPPED WITH RAPID SHUTDOWN'; 'PV SYSTEM AC DISCONNECT RATED AC OUTPUT CURRENT ___ AMPS AC NORMAL OPERATING VOLTAGE ___ VOLTS'; 'PV SYSTEM DC DISCONNECT RATED MAX POWER-POINT CURRENT ___ ADC / VOLTAGE ___ VDC / SHORT CIRCUIT CURRENT ___ ADC / MAXIMUM SYSTEM VOLTAGE ___ VDC'; 'WARNING ELECTRIC SHOCK HAZARD DO NOT TOUCH TERMINALS - TERMINALS ON BOTH LINE AND LOAD SIDES MAY BE ENERGIZED IN THE OPEN POSITION'; 'WARNING ELECTRIC SHOCK HAZARD IF A GROUND FAULT IS INDICATED, NORMALLY GROUNDED CONDUCTORS MAY BE UNGROUNDED AND ENERGIZED'; 'WARNING: PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER SOURCE'; and for ungrounded systems 'WARNING ELECTRIC SHOCK HAZARD. THE DC CONDUCTORS OF THIS PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEM ARE UNGROUNDED AND MAY BE ENERGIZED'. A permanent plaque or directory denoting all electric power sources is required per CEC 690.4(D), 690.56(B) and (C) and 705.10. 90% · fire department standard
• Does the authority specify placard wording of its own? Yes 90% · fire department standard
• Does it specify letter height, colour or material? Yes, and in unusual detail. Ontario Fire Department E-006 requires, for both the service-disconnect marking and the DC circuit marking: RED BACKGROUND, WHITE LETTERING, MINIMUM 3/8" LETTER HEIGHT, ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, ARIAL OR SIMILAR FONT NON-BOLD, and REFLECTIVE, WEATHER RESISTANT MATERIAL SUITABLE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT (durable adhesive materials meet this requirement). IB 107 states the same rule for the Building Department: 'Labels shall be reflective, and all letters shall be capitalized and shall be a minimum height of 3/8'' in white on a red background.' The standard plan expresses the height as type size and names an acceptable material: 'A phenolic plaque with contrasting colors between the text and background would meet the intent of the code for permanency. Type size is minimum 20 point (3/8") white on red background. Label to be suitable for the environment', with ANSI Z535.4 cited as the design guideline. 92% · department bulletin
• Is a site plan / facility map placard required, and what must it show? A permanent plaque or directory denoting all electric power sources on or in the premises is required, cited to CEC 690.4(D), 690.56(B) and (C) and 705.10 on both marking sheets of the standard plan, and to CEC 690.56 and 705.10 in IB 107. Ontario publishes no content specification of its own for that plaque - no north arrow, building-footprint, scale or callout requirements, and no sample site-plan placard. Searched: IB 107 (full text, both pages), the PV standard plan including both marking-and-warning-label sheets, and Ontario Fire Department Standard E-006 (full text, 5 pages) - E-006 specifies content for the two CAUTION markings only and is silent on a site plan or facility map. What Ontario DOES require as a drawing rather than a placard is the submittal site plan (property lines, north orientation, service equipment location, all wall-mounted PV equipment, working clearances). 80% · published checklist
• Does the UTILITY specify placards beyond the AHJ's? Yes. SCE's NBT/NEM Interconnection Handbook Version 10 (October 2025), Appendix H 'Examples of Signage and Requirements': 'Equipment signage shall be labeled by permanently attached machine-engraved laminated phenolic (or equal) tags. Typically, the marking should read "Grid Side" or "Generation Side" and required for isolation devices and net output generation metering. Signage may also be required for special conditions applications and/or as required by SCE.' 'Acceptable font sizes are between 3/8" - 1".' Appendix H opens by deferring to SCE's Electrical Service Requirements for signage requirements. These are additional to, not instead of, the City's red-background markings - the SCE tags are engraved phenolic and identify grid versus generation side at isolation devices, which no Ontario document asks for. 85% · utility interconnection handbook
• Where must the labels be placed? Ontario Fire Department E-006 is explicit and DISTINGUISHES RESIDENTIAL FROM COMMERCIAL. Main service disconnect: 'For residential applications, the marking may be placed within the main service disconnect. If the main service disconnect is operable with the service panel closed, then the marking should be placed on the outside cover. For commercial application, the marking shall be placed adjacent to the main service disconnect in a location clearly visible from the location where the lever is operated.' DC circuits: marking on all interior and exterior DC conduit, raceways, enclosures, cable assemblies and junction boxes, 'every 10 feet, at turns and above and/or below penetrations and all dc combiner and junction boxes'. IB 107 states the same interval for the DC marking - 'must be at 10' o.c.; and bends, above or below penetrations of roofs, ceilings, walls, or barriers, CEC 690.31(D)(2)'. E-006 also states 'No markings are required for the inverter.' SCE signage goes on isolation devices and net output generation metering. 90% · fire department standard

Where the AC disconnect must sit relative to the meter is usually the utility's rule, not the building department's. Battery storage frequently carries its own permit, its own inspection and its own fire conditions.

• Where must the AC disconnect be, relative to the meter? SCE states no distance for an ordinary residential load-side job. NBT/NEM Interconnection Handbook v10: 'For a load (generation) side connection, where the point of electrical connection is load side of the customer's main breaker, the single, visible open AC Disconnect shall be located near the PCC (Typically the meter) with 24/7 access to SCE personnel'; if it cannot be placed adjacent to the PCC, 'proper signage and accessibility will need to be reviewed and approved by the assigned engineer prior to installation'. The much-repeated ten feet appears in SCE only for the LINE/SUPPLY-side case: 'If the location of the fused AC Disconnect cannot be placed directly adjacent to the PCC then the assigned engineer will need to review and approve the location prior to installation; however, the placement of the overcurrent device shall be no further than 10 feet from the PCC' - that is a variance limit on the overcurrent device, not a general meter-distance rule. Handbook 5.5.4 goes further for the common residential case: where the facility has a main breaker operable by the customer on the same metering switchboard as the revenue meter, SCE can use the revenue meter to disconnect and no separate visible-open disconnect is required, provided the customer accepts an outage while the meter is out. Ontario itself sets no distance: IB 107 requires only that disconnecting means be at a readily accessible location per CEC 690.13(A)(1) and 690.15, and that proposed electrical service replacement locations be approved by the utility. 85% · utility interconnection handbook
• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? Yes 85% · department bulletin
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Yes. IB 107 sets the conditions: the ESS shall be listed in accordance with UL 9540 (CFC 1207.3.1); an ESS listed and labelled to UL 9540 and marked 'For Use in Residential Dwelling Units', installed per the manufacturer's instructions and the CEC, is not required to comply with CRC Section R330 (R330.1 Exception 1); the manufacturer's installation instructions must be provided to the inspector at the time of inspection; and where those instructions do not give clearances, CRC Table R330.5 must be followed. ESS terminals must have disconnecting means and be labelled per CEC 706.15. Residential energy storage systems under 38.4 kW are eligible for the Symbium real-time permit. 88% · department bulletin
• Is there a separate ESS permit or inspection? Yes 75% · department bulletin
• Is a ground mount treated as a structure? Yes 75% · department bulletin
• Is there a local rule on service upgrades or busbar sizing? Yes, and Ontario ALLOWS main-breaker de-rating subject to a permanent marking. IB 107: 'When the main circuit breaker is derated, a permanent marking must be provided on the panelboard to indicate that THE MAIN CIRCUIT BREAKER HAS BEEN DOWNSIZED TO _______ AMPS, DO NOT UPSIZE IT.' Two further Ontario-specific electrical rules apply: PV combiner panelboards 'must have permanent markings indicating that they are DEDICATED FOR PV CIRCUITS ONLY NO LOADS ARE TO BE CONNECTED'; and per OMC 8-1.06 all electrical metal conduit needs a ground conductor - the metal conduit will not act as the ground conductor. Supply-side connections and de-rating of main circuit breakers are outside the scope of the 10 kW standard plan and must go to plan review. Proposed locations of electrical service replacements must also be approved by the electrical utility, and service replacements require bonding to metal gas, hot and cold water pipes (CEC 250.104). 85% · department bulletin
• Is a specific mounting system or attachment spacing required? Yes, and the numbers are Ontario's own. From the PV standard plan: lag screws must be 5/16" diameter, corrosion-resistant type, embedded not less than 2 1/2" into the roof rafter or truss top chord, with the number of lag screws per connection shown on the structural mounting detail. Horizontal connection and attachment spacing shall not exceed 4 ft and must be staggered in adjacent horizontal rows; maximum rail cantilever 18". The standard covers flush-mounted arrays only, parallel to the roof, with a 2" to 10" gap to the roof surface, roof pitch 1/4:12 to 6:12, and array dead load at most 4 psf. Anything outside that goes to plan review with structural engineering. IB 107 adds a minimum 3/4" clearance from roof to bottom of conduit, or a 33 degree C temperature adder. 85% · published checklist

Booking is a portal, a phone call or an email depending on the authority, and the notice required is rarely zero. Book before the work is finished rather than after — the lead time, not the work, is usually what sets the date.

• How is an inspection booked? Portal 90% · department bulletin

Some authorities inspect their own solar work; some delegate it, and a few do not inspect the PV equipment itself at all. Who is coming determines what they will look at.

• Does this AHJ perform its own final solar inspection? Yes 90% · ordinance
• If delegated, to whom? Plan review only, and to two parties: Willdan (through the Geocivix portal at willdan.geocivix.com) performs residential PV plan check on the conventional route, returning a comment letter or a stamped approved set by email; Symbium performs the automated plan review on the real-time route. Field inspection is not delegated - it stays with City building inspectors. Ontario Fire Department takes the plan review itself where the array covers more than 50% of the roof of a residential building. 85% · department bulletin

A rough-in or mid-roof inspection, where one is required, has to happen before the work it covers is closed up. Missing a stage means opening something back up, and it is the most expensive kind of correction.

• Which inspections are required, and in what order? One inspection - the final. OMC 8-8.04(e): 'Only one inspection shall be required and performed by the Building Department for small residential rooftop solar energy systems eligible for expedited review', and (f) 'The inspection shall be done in a timely manner and should include consolidated inspections.' (g) allows a subsequent inspection if the system fails, which need not conform to the expedited requirements. No sequence of staged inspections is published for PV. 88% · ordinance
• Is a rough-in or mid-roof inspection required? No 85% · ordinance

The approved plan set, the permit, and the equipment listings should be on site and reachable. Inspectors routinely verify that installed equipment matches what was approved, and that the labels are the ones the plan set promised.

• Is there a published inspection checklist? No 70% · department page
• What must be on site at inspection? A printed COLOUR set of the approved stamped plans must be available in the field at the time of inspection (IB 111 and IB 116), plus 'The Symbium approval document' on the real-time route; a physical permit card is not needed, the job card being digital in Accela. IB 107 adds two site conditions checked at inspection: 'A ladder must be provided for inspections in accordance with Cal-OSHA regulations, secured and extended 3' above the roof', and for storage 'The Energy Storage System (ESS) manufacturer's installation instructions must be provided to the inspector at time of the inspection.' All required markings, signs and labels must already be installed on all equipment before any inspection. 88% · department bulletin
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Yes 90% · department bulletin

Passing gives you a final or an equivalent sign-off. That is not the same as permission to operate: PTO comes from the utility, and who tells the utility the inspection passed varies. A system left switched off for weeks is usually waiting on this handover.

• What is issued on pass? Final 80% · department bulletin
• Who notifies the utility for PTO? Installer 80% · utility interconnection handbook
• Is there a re-inspection fee? $113.00 85% · fee schedule
• How are corrections issued and cleared? On the conventional route, corrections come back as a comment letter emailed to the Geocivix account: IB 111 - 'If "Corrections Required", a comment letter will be emailed to the Geocivix email. ALL resubmittals will need to be done through Geocivix.' On approval a stamped set of the approved plans is emailed to the Geocivix account and to the City, the permit is created digitally and an automated email is sent. Note IB 111's blunt precondition: 'If fees are not paid in full, NO review will be performed.' Under OMC 8-8.03/8-8.04(d) an incomplete expedited application must receive 'a written correction notice detailing all deficiencies'. All revisions - including revisions to a Symbium real-time permit - must be submitted through Accela and Geocivix following IB 111 (IB 116). 85% · department bulletin