Town of Hillsborough

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% · department page
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? Both 90% · adopting ordinance (municipal code, Title 15)
• 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% · published checklist
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? No 88% · state statute
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? No, not for a standard compliant residential rooftop system 62% · published checklist
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? 10 kW AC (CEC rating) or less for the Town's expedited/standard-plan residential solar pathway; larger systems are not barred outright but must go through full engineered plan check rather than the simplified checklist/standard-plan route 85% · published checklist

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 82% · department page
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? Yes 90% · department page
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes 85% · 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? Completed building permit application; demonstrated compliance with the Town's solar eligibility checklist; a completed Standard Electrical Plan (or a full electrical plan with one-line diagram, module/string counts, inverter/combiner make-model, grounding/bonding and conductor sizing, and equipment cut sheets if the standard plan isn't used); a roof/site plan showing panel layout, plumbing/mechanical vent clearances, roof access point, code-compliant access pathways, PV fire classification and label locations; and completed expedited Structural Criteria with structural drawings/calculations stamped by a CA-licensed Civil or Structural Engineer 90% · published checklist
• How many copies, and in what format? Applications are now electronic-only via the eTRAKiT permit portal (the Town states it 'remain[s] paperless' and accepts online permits); the older (2015) Solar Check List item H still references '3 sets of plans if hard copies,' which appears superseded by the current all-electronic posture 68% · department page
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes — a site/roof diagram showing arrangement of panels on the roof, north arrow, lot dimensions, distance from property lines to adjacent buildings/structures, plumbing/mechanical vent clearances, roof access point, access pathways, PV fire classification, and label/marking locations 92% · published checklist
• Is a one-line / three-line diagram required? Yes 95% · published checklist
• Are string and conductor calculations required? Yes 90% · checklist / standard plan template
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? Yes, a structural PE/SE stamp is required — the Town's own submittal requirements call for 'structural drawings and calculations stamped and signed by a California-licensed Civil or Structural Engineer' with no stated kW exemption threshold (required as part of the 'expedited Structural Criteria' package for the same 10 kW pathway that otherwise uses simplified standard plans) 78% · published checklist
• Is an electrical PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No separate electrical PE stamp requirement is stated for solar — the Standard Plan (10 kW or less, one/two-family dwelling) can be completed and signed by the 'Contractor/Engineer' interchangeably; a licensed engineer's stamp is only implicated if the installation falls outside the Standard Plan's scope and requires the 'Comprehensive Standard Plan' or a fully engineered submittal 55% · checklist / standard plan template

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? eTRAKiT (hills-trk.aspgov.com/eTRAKiT) for standard/traditional plan check; a Symbium-powered automated code-check and permitting pathway under SB 379 for eligible solar/ESS systems 85% · department page
• Can the whole application be completed online? Yes, for the Symbium/SB 379 automated pathway; the standard eTRAKiT path also supports full electronic submittal, review, payment and issuance 72% · department page
• What does a residential solar permit cost? $905 flat (Adopted FY 2026-27), line item 'Solar Energy Storage Permit – w/ or w/o BESS' 85% · fee schedule
• How is the fee calculated? Flat 85% · fee schedule
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? No separate plan-check line found for the solar permit specifically — the $905 flat fee appears to be all-inclusive (the schedule's general 'Plan Check' percentage-of-permit-fee line sits only under the valuation-based 'Building & Combination of Trade Scope' table, not under the flat-rate solar line) 60% · 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? 1 to 3 business days for standard-plan submittals 82% · published checklist
• Which utility handles interconnection here? Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) 78% · department page

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 85% · adopting ordinance (municipal code, Title 15)
• Which building code edition is in force? 2025 California Building Code (Title 24, Part 2), effective town-wide 1 Jan 2026 92% · department page
• Which fire code edition is in force? 2025 California Fire Code, plus 2024 International Fire Code Appendices 90% · adopting ordinance (municipal code, Title 15)
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes 92% · adopting ordinance (municipal code, Title 15)
• What is the installation judged against? The 2025 California Electrical Code (Title 24, Part 3) as adopted and amended by HMC Chapter 15.08, together with the Town's own Solar PV Standard Plan/Requirements documents which implement CEC Articles 690 and 705 for residential PV 88% · checklist / standard plan template

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? No town-specific numeric ridge-setback/pathway amendment was found in HMC Title 15's fire chapters; the Town's own submittal handout instead requires a roof plan showing 'code-compliant access pathways' and refers applicants to the State Fire Marshal's Solar PV Installation Guideline for examples, meaning the base 2025 CFC pathway/setback tables govern unamended. Separately, HMC §15.04.130/.131/.132 mandates Class A roof covering town-wide for all zones (stricter than the state's WUI-only default), which bears on PV fire classification even though it isn't a setback rule 60% · published checklist

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? Rapid shutdown is required under the adopted 2023-NEC-based 2025 California Electrical Code (CEC §690.12), which applies statewide with no local exception found — but the Town's own current 'Solar PV Standard Plan' (internally dated 15 Dec 2025, i.e., prepared for the current code cycle) cites CEC §§690.3, 690.4, 690.5, 690.7, 690.11, 690.17, 690.35, 690.53, 690.54 and 705.12 in detail and never once cites §690.12 by number 68% · checklist / standard plan template

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? Inverter-output-connection warning ('DO NOT RELOCATE THIS OVERCURRENT DEVICE'), DC-conductors-ungrounded warning (if applicable), PV system AC disconnect sign, dual-power-sources warning at the main service, ground-fault shock-hazard warning, 'WARNING: PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER SOURCE' marking on junction/combiner boxes and conduit, PV system DC disconnect sign, and a CEC 705.12-required permanent power-source directory/plaque 90% · checklist / standard plan template
• Does the authority specify placard wording of its own? Yes 90% · checklist / standard plan template
• Does it specify letter height, colour or material? Letter height: an informational note recommends '20 point (3/8 inch) should be considered the minimum,' citing ANSI Z535.4 guidelines for safety-sign design; material: a 'phenolic plaque with contrasting colors between text and background' is cited as meeting the intent of the code for permanency; no single mandatory color scheme beyond standard warning-label convention is specified by the Town itself 78% · checklist / standard plan template
• Is a site plan / facility map placard required, and what must it show? Yes — a roof plan/site diagram is required showing the roof layout, PV panel/module locations, clearances to plumbing and mechanical vents, approximate roof access point, code-compliant access pathways, PV system fire classification, and locations of all required labels and markings; CEC §705.12 additionally requires a permanent plaque/directory denoting all electric power sources on the premises 85% · published checklist
• Where must the labels be placed? At the main service/utility disconnect, the PV system AC and DC disconnects, and on junction/combiner boxes and along conduit runs (marked at intervals not exceeding every 10 feet, per CRC R331.2/CFC 605.11.1) 88% · checklist / standard plan template

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.

• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? Yes — rooftop PV modules must be tested, listed and identified with a fire classification per UL 1703, meeting at minimum Class A (since HMC §15.04.130/.131 mandates Class A roof coverings town-wide); the Town's own handout set includes a State Fire Marshal bulletin specifically on this UL 1703 Class A/B/C classification requirement 75% · state bulletin, linked as a Town handout
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Yes, conditionally — the Town's simplified/expedited 10 kW pathway explicitly requires the system be 'utility interactive and without battery storage' (Solar Check List item D) to qualify for that streamlined route; systems that include a battery are not barred but must go through full/comprehensive review outside the simplified checklist, and the Master Fee Schedule carries a dedicated 'Solar Energy Storage Permit – w/ or w/o BESS' line confirming combined PV+battery systems are permitted 80% · published checklist
• Is there a separate ESS permit or inspection? Yes 85% · fee schedule
• Is there a local rule on service upgrades or busbar sizing? No local amendment adding a service-upgrade or busbar-sizing rule beyond the standard CEC 705.12(D)(2) 120%/100% bus-bar rule; the Town's own Standard Plan implements that CEC formula (Table 4) rather than a Hillsborough-specific rule, and a separate 'Electrical Service Permit' fee line exists for panel upgrades without an accompanying busbar-sizing amendment in Title 15 65% · checklist / standard plan template
• Is a specific mounting system or attachment spacing required? Yes — the Town requires racking/attachment documentation: type and number of roof coverings, roof framing type/size/spacing, panel weight and support locations/attachment method, and (where a pre-approved racking system is used) manufacturer documentation of maximum allowable weight, attachment method and product evaluation/structural design 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? Phone (primary — call the Building Division at 650-375-7411); limited online submission is available specifically for after-hours inspection requests 82% · department page
• How much notice is required? 48 hours / next business day, per General Permit Information and the Town's Solar PV System Requirements handout ('Inspection requests should be made at least 48 hours in advance'; 'typically scheduled for the next business day... within a 48 hour window'); note the separate Building Division static page instead states a 'three-day lead time,' an internal inconsistency across the Town's own pages that I could not resolve 62% · department page
• Are same-day or AM/PM windows offered? No same-day or next-day inspections are accommodated; specific AM/PM time windows are not published in any Town document reviewed 70% · 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 90% · published checklist

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? At minimum, one final inspection after the system is fully installed ('Once all permits to construct the solar installation have been issued and the system has been installed, it must be inspected before final approval is granted'); the document does not describe a separate rough-in stage for the simplified 10 kW pathway 68% · published 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.

• Is there a published inspection checklist? Yes 88% · published checklist
• What must be on site at inspection? The stamped, approved plans and permit card must remain on the job site at all times, with all attached documents intact; the installation must be ready in the field to demonstrate conformance with 'all technical requirements' and the approved plans 80% · department page
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Yes 92% · published checklist

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.

• Is there a re-inspection fee? $248 (Building Reinspection fee, Adopted FY 2026-27) — the Town's general reinspection fee; no solar-specific reinspection line was found 70% · fee schedule
• How are corrections issued and cleared? The inspector notes deficiencies at the time of inspection; for issued permits needing revision/resubmittal, the applicant logs into the eTRAKiT web portal, attaches the corrected complete plan set (individual pages are not accepted — only complete plan sets), and then calls the assigned permit technician to flag the resubmittal for review 68% · department page