Town of Danville

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% · authority's own page
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? Both (Building and Electrical, single combined Building Permit with an electrical sub-permit); fire-code review/inspection of PV and ESS is split out to San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District, an independent special district, which charges its own PV/ESS fee; Contra Costa Central Sanitary District must stamp plans before submittal for any ground-mounted system. 90% · fee schedule
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes 95% · published checklist
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Combined 85% · fee schedule
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? No. 90% · adopting ordinance
• Is there a historic-district review? No blanket historic-district review for residential rooftop solar. Danville's Heritage Resource program is voluntary and covers only 21 individually Town-designated sites (identified by a brass plaque); if the specific parcel is one of those, the Heritage Resource Commission has a review role, but this is not a general overlay affecting ordinary residential lots. 65% · authority's own page
• Is a wind or windstorm certification required? No. 60% · authority's own document
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? Yes — a Use Permit can be required (and denied) if the Chief Building Official makes written findings, based on substantial evidence, that the solar system would have a 'specific, adverse impact' on public health/safety; such decisions are appealable to the Planning Commission. 90% · adopting ordinance
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? No absolute cap on residential system size, but two size thresholds matter: (1) MC 10-12.1(f) defines 'small residential rooftop solar energy system' — eligible for the ministerial same-day/1-3-day review — as <=10 kW AC nameplate or <=30 kW thermal, installed on a single or duplex dwelling, not exceeding the town's max legal building height; (2) the national SolarAPP+ program the town uses for automated review separately caps eligible systems at <=38.4 kW AC. Larger residential systems remain permittable but go through standard (non-expedited) plan review. 85% · adopting 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? Licensed contractor for the standard/expedited SolarAPP+ path (national SolarAPP+ program excludes owner-installed systems); a homeowner may pull the permit as owner-builder via the town's standard (non-SolarAPP+) process using the Addendum for Owner/Builders form. 65% · program eligibility page
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? No town-specific contractor pre-registration requirement found. 60% · authority's own page
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes for the standard (non-SolarAPP+) permit path via the town's Owner/Builder Addendum; No for the SolarAPP+ automated path, which the program itself excludes owner-installed systems from. 65% · authority's own 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? Per the town's 'Photovoltaic Systems Submittal Requirements' (ID 782, rev 12/15/2025): drawings (plot plan, electrical plans, structural plans stamped/signed, and for ground-mount 2 sets stamped by Contra Costa Central Sanitary District) plus supporting documents (manufacturer spec sheets/installation instructions for modules, inverters, disconnects, transformers, batteries, generators, mounting systems; structural calculations if weight >5 psf or ground-mounted). 95% · published checklist
• How many copies, and in what format? Drawings: 2 sets, 11x17 in. minimum up to 24x36 in. maximum, for in-person submittal (sheet-size rule applies to electronic submittals too). Supporting documents: 2 sets, 8.5x11 in. minimum. 95% · published checklist
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes. Plot plan must show: lot dimensions (metes and bounds), footprint of all existing/proposed buildings with dimensions to property lines and between buildings, north arrow and scale, visible utility to curb, easements, and the location/species/variety/trunk size and canopy/dripline of all trees. 95% · published checklist
• Is a one-line / three-line diagram required? Yes. 90% · published checklist
• Are string and conductor calculations required? Yes, as data shown on the required electrical line diagram (modules per string, conductor/conduit type and size, breaker sizes) rather than as a separate stand-alone calculation packet; structural calculations are separately required (signed/stamped) when system weight exceeds 5 psf or the system is ground-mounted. 70% · published checklist
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? Yes, always required (stamped and signed structural plans are listed as a base drawing requirement for every PV submittal), and stamped structural CALCULATIONS are specifically required once total system weight exceeds 5 lb/sq ft, or whenever the system is ground-mounted. 90% · published checklist
• Is an electrical PE stamp required, and at what threshold? Not specified — the submittal checklist requires stamped/signed structural plans and (conditionally) structural calculations, but does not name an electrical PE stamp or a threshold that would trigger one; electrical drawings are only required to be prepared to code (CEC Article 690), not stamped by a PE. 60% · 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? Tyler Technologies EnerGov 'SelfService' portal, reached at danville.ca.gov/CSS (redirects to danvilleca-energovpub.tylerhost.net/Apps/SelfService). 95% · portal landing page
• Can the whole application be completed online? Yes, for most residential projects including solar (submit design via SolarAPP+ for eligible systems, or upload plans directly; pay fees; sign and upload the building permit; schedule inspections) all through the online portal. 85% · portal
• What does a residential solar permit cost? $201.50 flat + $7.44 per kWp of system rating (Fee = A + B*v, A=$201.50, B=$7.44/kWp), for both residential and non-residential photovoltaic systems. 95% · fee schedule
• How is the fee calculated? Tiered/Per kW (flat base component plus a per-kWp variable component). 95% · fee schedule
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? No separate plan-check line identified for solar; the Photovoltaic established fee (A+Bv) appears to be a single all-in figure, distinct from the percentage-of-building-permit 'Plan Review' fees that apply to standard (non-solar) building permits in the same schedule. 65% · 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? Same day for over-the-counter applications, or 1-3 business days for electronic applications, for 'small residential rooftop solar energy systems' (<=10 kW AC / 30 kW thermal) that meet the approved checklist/standard plans; not separately stated for larger or non-qualifying residential systems, which follow standard plan review. 90% · adopting ordinance
• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? Not stated in a Danville-specific ordinance; the Town has adopted the 2025 California Building/Administrative Code 'in its entirety' with no amendment found to the permit-expiration section, so the state model-code default (permit becomes invalid if work is not commenced or is abandoned for 180 days) applies by adoption. 55% · adopting ordinance
• Which utility handles interconnection here? Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E). 90% · authority's own page + utility tariff
• Where does the utility sit in the sequence? Parallel, with Permission to Operate (PTO) gated on the AHJ's final inspection clearance: the interconnection application can be filed while the building permit is in process, but PG&E's Distribution Provider approval for interconnection normally requires 'evidence of Applicant's final electric inspection clearance from the Governmental Authority having jurisdiction' before PTO issues. 80% · utility DG manual/tariff

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 (Part 3, Title 24 CCR), effective 1 Jan 2026. 90% · adopting ordinance
• Which building code edition is in force? 2025 California Building Code and 2025 California Residential Code, effective 1 Jan 2026. 95% · authority's own document
• Which fire code edition is in force? 2025 California Fire Code, effective 1 Jan 2026, adopted by the Town for its own Chapter X purposes; San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District (the actual fire AHJ) adopts fire-code amendments separately through its own Board. 85% · adopting ordinance
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? No amendments to the text of the adopted model codes themselves — the Building (10-1.1), Electrical (10-3.1) and Fire (10-6.1) code sections each say the respective 2025 code is 'adopted in its entirety.' Danville does, however, layer separate freestanding local ordinances alongside the codes: Ch. 10-12 (Small Residential Rooftop Solar Systems), 10-8 (Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone), 10-9 (Post-Disaster Placards), 10-11 (Gas Shut-Off Devices), and 10-17 (EV Charging Stations). 80% · adopting ordinance
• What is the installation judged against? The 2025 CEC (based on 2023 NEC) Article 690, plus the 2025 CBC/CRC structural provisions and 2025 CFC roof-access/pathway provisions; Danville's own submittal checklist explicitly states 'Installation of the PV system shall be in conformance with CEC Article 690.' 90% · published checklist

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? For sloped roofs (>2:12): hip-roof layouts need a 3-ft-wide clear access pathway from eave to ridge on each panelled slope; single-ridge roofs need two 3-ft pathways per slope; panels must stay >=18 in. from hips/valleys where panels are on both sides (may abut if only one side is panelled and hip/valley lengths are equal); panels may be no higher than 3 ft below the ridge (for smoke ventilation); ground-mounted arrays require a 10-ft clear, brush-free area. 95% · published checklist + fire code

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 — required under the 2025 California Electrical Code (based on 2023 NEC) Article 690.12, which the town's own submittal checklist incorporates by reference ('conformance with CEC Article 690'), even though the checklist text itself does not use the words 'rapid shutdown.' 70% · NEC edition in force

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? Identification and warning signage 'in conformance with CEC Article 690' at the service equipment (per the town's own checklist); additionally PG&E requires an engraved placard on the metering equipment whenever a line/supply-side (load-side-bypass) fusible AC disconnect is installed. 85% · ordinance + utility spec
• Does the authority specify placard wording of its own? No — the Town does not prescribe its own placard wording; it defers generically to 'CEC Article 690' compliance. PG&E prescribes wording only for the specific line/supply-side-tap placard ('indicating there is a line/supply side connection'). 75% · ordinance
• Does it specify letter height, colour or material? Not specified by the Town in any document reviewed, and not specified for letter height/color/material in PG&E's Greenbook either (only 'engraved placard' is specified for the line-side-tap case, with no dimensions). 60% · utility DG manual
• Is a site plan / facility map placard required, and what must it show? No distinct 'facility map' placard beyond the required roof plan sheet itself: the submittal package's Roof Plan must show panel layout, fire department access pathway, total roof/panel area and coverage percentage, and device/service locations — effectively serving as the site/facility map, but it is a design-drawing requirement, not a separate placard mounted at the service equipment. 60% · published checklist
• Does the UTILITY specify placards beyond the AHJ's? Yes. PG&E requires an AC disconnect per Table 6-3 of its Greenbook for all meter panels except small (<=320A, single-phase) self-contained socket panels, and specifically requires an engraved placard on the metering equipment indicating a line/supply-side connection whenever a fusible AC disconnect is installed ahead of the main breaker. 90% · utility DG manual
• Where must the labels be placed? The PG&E line/supply-side-connection placard must be 'installed on the metering equipment.' The town's own checklist does not add a separate location requirement beyond generic CEC Article 690 compliance (which places rapid-shutdown and disconnect labels at/near the service disconnecting means and PV disconnect per code). 65% · 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? PG&E does not require a separate AC disconnect switch at all for a typical residential self-contained, socket-based meter panel <=320A single-phase (Table 6-3) — the NEC/CEC-required 'readily accessible' disconnecting means near the service equipment still applies as a building-code matter even when PG&E doesn't independently require a utility-grade disconnect. Where an AC disconnect IS required (larger/transformer-rated panels, or any line/supply-side tap), it must sit ahead of the main breaker and after the meter, with an engraved placard on the metering equipment for line-side-tap installations. 80% · utility DG manual
• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? Yes. 90% · published checklist
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Yes, under detailed conditions: a floor plan of the structure housing the battery bank, battery type/size/dimensions/ventilation/physical-damage protection, anchoring method, a battery wiring diagram, inclusion in the electrical single-line diagram, and labeling of each battery to match its assigned breaker. 90% · fire code + amendments
• Is there a separate ESS permit or inspection? Not as a separate Town building permit (ESS is submitted within the same PV/solar Building Permit application per the submittal checklist), but San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District charges its own separate Energy Storage Systems construction-permit plan-review/inspection fee ($743, item 105.6.5) distinct from its Solar Photovoltaic Power Systems fee ($957, item 105.6.20). 80% · fee schedule
• Is a ground mount treated as a structure? Yes. 90% · published checklist
• Is there a local rule on service upgrades or busbar sizing? No local rule found. Danville's Electrical Code chapter (MC 10-3) has exactly one section — 10-3.1 Adoption — adopting the 2025 CEC in its entirety, with no supplemental section addressing service upgrades or busbar sizing. 75% · adopting ordinance
• Is a specific mounting system or attachment spacing required? No fixed spacing number is prescribed, but a specific attachment/mounting submittal is required: a torque schedule (in/lbs or ft/lbs) for all connections (inverter mounting hardware, disconnects, breakers, module clips, lug/panel hardware, racking system), UL listing of the mounting/racking system, and a racking/railing layout showing spans and attachment-point locations on the roof plan. 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 (Tyler EnerGov 'CSS' Citizen Self Service, request an inspection online) or Phone (IVR system at 925-314-3333); San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District final inspections are booked directly with the District at 925-838-6600 rather than through the Town's system. 90% · department page
• How much notice is required? Request by 3:00 p.m. the business day before for a next-business-day inspection (effectively 1 business day's notice); inspections can be scheduled up to 5 days in advance. 90% · department page
• Are same-day or AM/PM windows offered? AM/PM preference can be selected when scheduling by phone; a specific 2-hour inspection window is assigned and posted online after 5:00 p.m. the evening before the scheduled date. 90% · 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? Delegated (split): the Building Division performs the building/electrical final itself, and for small qualifying residential systems MC 10-12.5(h) limits the Town to a single consolidated inspection — but 'a separate fire inspection may be performed' by the fire authority if no delegation agreement exists, and the Town's own Inspection Codes list gives San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District's direct phone number as the contact for a Fire final rather than folding it into the Town's own inspection codes. 75% · department page + ordinance
• If delegated, to whom? San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District (independent special fire district), for the fire-code portion of PV/ESS review and inspection. 85% · fee schedule

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? For small qualifying residential rooftop solar (<=10 kW AC/30 kW thermal): a single consolidated Building Division final inspection (no separate rough-in required by the ordinance). For larger residential, ground-mount, or battery systems, the Town's general Electrical inspection codes apply (e.g., 401 Service, 402 Subpanel, 404 Rough Electric, 405 UFER Ground) ahead of a 905 Building Final, with a possible separate Fire final booked directly with SRVFPD. 70% · ordinance + department page
• Is a rough-in or mid-roof inspection required? No, for systems that qualify as 'small residential rooftop solar' under MC 10-12 — the ordinance limits the Town to a single required inspection. Not separately addressed for non-qualifying (larger, ground-mount, or non-expedited) systems beyond the Town's generic Electrical inspection codes. 65% · 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 dedicated solar-specific field-inspection checklist is published; the Town publishes only a generic town-wide 'Inspection Codes' list (by trade/category, e.g., Electrical 401-406, Building, Plumbing, Mechanical) rather than a PV-specific checklist of items checked. 70% · department page
• What must be on site at inspection? Not explicitly itemized in any Town document found; the inspection-scheduling process references an 'inspection card' (with a PIN number in its top-right corner) that the inspector confirms against the permit and site address, implying the permit/inspection card and approved plans should be available on site. 50% · department page
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Likely yes, inferred rather than directly documented: the approved plan set (which the field inspection is checked against) must include UL listings, device listings, and CEC Article 690 identification/warning signage per the submittal checklist, but no separate field-inspection checklist itemizing 'verify labels and listings' as a discrete step was found. 55% · published checklist / practice

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? A signed-off Building Final on the permit/inspection card. A Certificate of Occupancy is not typically issued for a PV addition to an existing single-family residence (COs apply to new construction/occupancy changes under the CBC as adopted). 55% · department page / inference
• Who notifies the utility for PTO? The installer, acting as Applicant, submits the interconnection request to PG&E including evidence of the AHJ's final electric-inspection clearance; PG&E (Distribution Provider) then processes Permission to Operate. 75% · utility DG manual/tariff
• Is there a re-inspection fee? $122 minimum (Reinspection/Administration Fee). 90% · fee schedule
• How are corrections issued and cleared? A written correction notice or letter detailing all deficiencies and any additional required information/documentation is sent to the applicant for resubmission; if a small qualifying residential system fails inspection, a subsequent (re-)inspection is authorized but need not conform to the ordinance's expedited timelines. 85% · ordinance