City of San Leandro

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 92% · department page
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? Both 90% · department checklist
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes 95% · department page
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Combined 88% · fee schedule
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? No city-imposed HOA/architectural review step is documented; the City references California's Solar Rights Act (Civil Code §714, via the AB 2188 implementation guide it publishes) which preempts most HOA disapproval of solar. 55% · referenced state-law guide

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 80% · department page
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? Yes, for the Instant SolarAPP+ route 68% · department checklist
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes 88% · department form

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? One combined PDF plan set (site plan, roof framing plan, elevation/section, attachment/load calc detail, grounding detail, weatherproofing note, single-line diagram, photo of existing main panel with dead front off, labels, manufacturer spec sheets); for SolarAPP+ route, add Approved SolarAPP+ Checklist, Approved SolarAPP+ Specification Sheets, and signed Owner Acknowledgement of SolarAPP+ form. 95% · published checklist
• How many copies, and in what format? One (1) combined PDF file under 100 MB, bookmarked by sheet number/name; if hand-drafted, one full-scale paper set 93% · published checklist
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes — must show site address; owner/designer/contractor contact info; location of proposed/existing buildings, property lines, easements, panel installation locations, and the main service location 93% · published checklist
• Is a one-line / three-line diagram required? Yes 93% · published checklist
• Are string and conductor calculations required? Yes 90% · published checklist
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No numeric kW/weight threshold is published; the guideline states only that drawings 'prepared by an architect or engineer must be stamped and signed,' i.e., a PE/architect stamp is required whenever the plans were professionally prepared, and prescriptive attachment/load-calc data is otherwise submitted directly by the installer for plan-check review. 72% · published checklist

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? San Leandro Online Permit Portal, powered by Accela (aca-prod.accela.com/SANLEANDRO), reached via SanLeandro.org/PermitPortal 95% · portal landing page
• Can the whole application be completed online? Yes 90% · portal
• What does a residential solar permit cost? $450 for a residential system up to 15 kW, plus $15 per additional kW over 15 kW, plus $212 Filing/Issuance Fee, plus an applicable Plan Check Fee 90% · fee schedule
• How is the fee calculated? Tiered 88% · fee schedule
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? Yes 88% · 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 to 7 business days for initial residential plan review (plus 3-7 more for any resubmittal); permit number assigned within 3-5 business days of fee payment 92% · department page
• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? Inferred 180 days (standard California Building Code default expiration), not confirmed by a San Leandro-specific document 50% · fee schedule (inference)
• Which utility handles interconnection here? PG&E (Pacific Gas & Electric) 82% · city page + utility document
• Where does the utility sit in the sequence? Parallel 55% · utility document (inference)

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 NEC, as incorporated into the 2025 California Electrical Code (CEC), effective January 1, 2026 88% · adopting ordinance/department page
• Which building code edition is in force? 2025 California Building Code (CBC) and 2025 California Residential Code (CRC), effective January 1, 2026 92% · adopting ordinance/department page
• Which fire code edition is in force? 2025 California Fire Code (CFC), effective January 1, 2026 90% · adopting ordinance/department page
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes 82% · department page
• What is the installation judged against? 2025 CRC/CBC/CEC as locally adopted (SLMC Title 7, Ch. 7-5), with PV-specific labeling judged against 2025 CRC §R330.11 78% · checklist citing code section

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.

Nothing recorded for City of San Leandro on this step yet — 1 question checked and found unpublished. The guidance above is general.

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, rapid shutdown is required per NEC 690.12 as incorporated in the 2025 CEC (built on 2023 NEC), effective 1 Jan 2026 75% · adopting ordinance (inference)

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? Code-mandated PV/rapid-shutdown disconnect placards per adopted NEC (690.56(C)/705.10), plus a City-required label carrying the qualified maintenance/service provider's contact information per 2025 CRC §R330.11(2) 78% · checklist
• Does the authority specify placard wording of its own? No 68% · checklist
• Does the UTILITY specify placards beyond the AHJ's? Yes — PG&E requires its own AC disconnect switch labeling: permanent signage reading e.g. 'UTILITY AC DISCONNECT SWITCH,' engraved phenolic or ANSI Z535.4-compliant, minimum 3/8-inch capital lettering, plus a location map if the switch is not grouped with the meter 88% · utility DG manual
• Where must the labels be placed? Utility AC disconnect label must be on the front of the switch itself; if the disconnect is not grouped with the PG&E meter, a location map and directional signage are also required at the meter 85% · utility DG manual

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? 10 feet or less, in line of sight, from PG&E's electric meter at the point of common coupling; must be at the same grade level as the meter if outdoors; wall/pad-mounted units installed at 48-75 inches above grade; never on a floor/level above grade, on a roof, or in a non-approved meter room 88% · utility DG manual
• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? No dedicated City-approved product list; standard NRTL/UL-listed equipment is required, with manufacturer spec sheets submitted in the plan set for the panel, inverter, attachment system and any ESS 58% · checklist (inference)
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Yes — energy storage system batteries are permitted and are processed through the same PV/ESS submittal and permit process (including the SolarAPP+ instant-permit route, which lists 'Energy storage system batteries' as a checkable work type) 62% · department form
• Is there a separate ESS permit or inspection? No — ESS is processed as an added scope item on the same PV permit ('Residential Solar Permit with SolarAPP' covers roof PV, ESS batteries and Main Panel Upgrade as checkbox options), not as a separate permit type 65% · checklist (inference)

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 92% · department page
• How much notice is required? 2 business days 85% · department page
• Are same-day or AM/PM windows offered? Yes — AM/PM windows offered (Mon-Fri 8:30am-noon or 1-4pm); after-hours and weekend inspections available at additional cost 88% · department page

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 for building/electrical (performed by City Building & Safety Division inspectors); fire-related review/inspection is delegated to Alameda County Fire Department under contract 80% · department page
• If delegated, to whom? Alameda County Fire Department (fire code administration and inspection only, under a services contract) 85% · department page

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? Typically a single final PV/electrical inspection after installation is complete; if underground trenching to the service is involved, a separate Underground Electrical Inspection is scheduled and paid for before further inspections can be booked 65% · department checklist

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.

• What must be on site at inspection? Printed permit and job card; for the SolarAPP+ route, also the Approved SolarAPP+ Checklist and Approved SolarAPP+ Specification Sheets (or latest revised versions if a post-approval revision was made) 78% · department checklist
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Yes 65% · department checklist (inference)

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 75% · department page
• Who notifies the utility for PTO? Installer 50% · utility process (inference)
• Is there a re-inspection fee? $319/hour (1-hour minimum) under the 'Miscellaneous Inspections — Fees for Inspection not otherwise set forth' line item; after-hours/weekend re-inspections are $606/hour (2-hour minimum) 62% · fee schedule (inference)
• How are corrections issued and cleared? Corrections are issued as plan-check comments emailed from NoReply@SanLeandro.org to the project contact; the applicant responds/uploads revisions through the Accela portal per the City's 'How To Respond to Comments' guide 72% · department page