Town of Moraga

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? Delegated 93% · municipal code
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes 96% · municipal code
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Combined 78% · fee schedule
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? No -- not required by the AHJ 60% · municipal code
• Is there a historic-district review? No -- not for a typical residential PV retrofit 70% · municipal code
• Is a wind or windstorm certification required? No 65% · municipal code
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? No -- not for a standard residential rooftop PV retrofit; possibly Yes for a ground-mount or larger system that triggers Hillside Development (Ch. 8.136), Ridgeline Protection (Ch. 8.128) or Scenic Corridor (Ch. 8.132) review as a 'new structure.' 58% · municipal code
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? 10 kW AC nameplate rating (or 30 kW thermal) is the ceiling for eligibility under the expedited/streamlined 'small residential rooftop solar energy system' review path; the system must also be located on a rooftop of a detached single-family dwelling or duplex and must not exceed the building height limit of the zoning district. This is a gate for the streamlined path (citing Gov. Code section 65850.5), not an absolute ban on larger systems, which route to standard review. 95% · municipal code

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 72% · department page
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? No 55% · department page
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes 70% · 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? Complete plan set: roof/site plan showing module and equipment locations and existing roof framing; single-line diagram tying the system into the house panel and PG&E service; manufacturer installation/grounding instructions and spec sheets for all major components (modules, inverter, racking, batteries if any); the County's Residential PV Eligibility & Structural Checklist (Structural Criteria worksheet attached if any prescriptive item fails). 90% · published checklist
• How many copies, and in what format? Digital: one bookmarked, unsecured, multi-page 11x17-minimum PDF (24x36 for ground-mount/commercial roof), drawn to scale (no scans), with a 3.5in x 6in blank area reserved for county stamps. In-office paper submittal: 3 sets, 11x17 minimum. 86% · published checklist
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes -- a roof plan (roof-mount) or site plan (ground-mount) showing module/array locations, existing roof framing, and inverter/battery/equipment locations, plus a separate diagram of the roof layout showing clear access pathways and the approximate locations of the electrical disconnecting means and roof access points. 88% · published checklist
• Is a one-line / three-line diagram required? Yes 90% · published checklist
• Are string and conductor calculations required? Yes 75% · published checklist
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? Required only if the array fails the County's prescriptive 'Structural Criteria for Residential Flush-Mounted Rooftop Solar Arrays' checks (roof condition, anchor horizontal spacing per Table 1, wind-uplift/fastener check) -- if any item is checked NO, project-specific drawings and calculations stamped and signed by a California-licensed Civil or Structural Engineer must be attached. 85% · 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? Contra Costa County's ePermits Center (epermits.cccounty.us) for the building/electrical permit itself (the function Moraga delegates to the county); SolarAPP+ offered as an optional software-driven pathway for qualifying residential rooftop PV. For the (usually-inapplicable, per MMC 8.72.030's solar exemption) Planning step, the Town's own Application Forms page provides downloadable PDF forms submitted by email to planning@moraga.ca.us -- no online planning portal was found. 85% · department page
• Can the whole application be completed online? Partially -- Yes for the county building/electrical permit (ePermits Center supports full online submittal/review/payment; SolarAPP+ is a fully online path for qualifying residential PV); No for Moraga's own Planning submittal, which the Town's own Application Forms page describes only as downloadable PDF forms with no online portal, submitted by email/phone/mail. 78% · department page
• What does a residential solar permit cost? $272 flat for a residential rooftop PV system ≤15 kW AC ($86 Building Permit/Inspection + $86 Plan Check + $100 Electrical Review), plus $15/kW above 15 kW AC. Thermal systems: $258 flat ≤10 kWth, plus $15/kWth above. This is the county fee actually paid, since the county performs the building-permit function for Moraga (a confirmed 'Contract City'). A separate district fire-construction-permit fee may also apply -- see Q45/46. 92% · fee schedule
• How is the fee calculated? Tiered / Per kW 90% · fee schedule
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? Yes 90% · 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? Initial completeness review: about 4-5 business days (county's own 'Step 1: Initial Review' on its Applying-for-a-Permit process page). Full plan-review duration beyond that is not fixed and depends on complexity/correction cycles; no Moraga-specific figure exists since the county performs this function. 68% · department page
• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? Approximately 365 days of inactivity, inferred 55% · fee schedule
• Which utility handles interconnection here? Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) 92% · department page
• Where does the utility sit in the sequence? Parallel, with Permission-to-Operate gated on the AHJ's final inspection clearance 75% · utility 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 (CEC) 90% · adopting ordinance
• Which building code edition is in force? 2025 California Building Code / 2025 California Residential Code 92% · adopting ordinance
• Which fire code edition is in force? 2025 California Fire Code (plus the 2024 IFC by reference for provisions the CFC does not address), per Moraga-Orinda Fire District (MOFD) Ordinance 26-01, dated 21 Jan 2026 on MOFD's own Ordinances & Resolutions page, repealing MOFD Ordinance 23-01 (2022 CFC). Note: the Moraga Municipal Code itself contains NO fire-code adoption chapter at all -- confirmed by a full walk of the code's Table of Contents (Title 7 'Health and Safety' has only an old sprinkler/alarm ordinance from 1982 naming 'the Moraga fire protection district'; there is no equivalent to Orinda's codified OMC Ch. 8.20). Fire-code adoption and enforcement rest entirely with MOFD as an independent special district. MOFD's own ordinance table requires a 'Town of Moraga Ratification' document (linked from the same page) alongside Orinda's and the County's, indicating the Town ratifies MOFD's fire-code ordinances by a standalone Council resolution rather than by codifying the fire code into its own municipal code. 82% · department page
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes, generally (e.g., MMC 15.04.020 amends CalGreen Section 4.410 to require digital-format maintenance/operations manuals, and affirms the Town may impose stricter-than-CalGreen standards; MMC 15.04.030 amends a county drainage-facility section) -- but none found specific to solar/PV, rapid shutdown, or busbar sizing. 88% · municipal code
• What is the installation judged against? The installation is judged against the adopted 2025 CBC/CRC/CEC/CGBSC (as amended by County Ordinance 2025-19, no PV-specific local amendments found), Contra Costa County Ordinance Code Ch. 718-12 (10 kW AC/30 kW thermal small-residential-rooftop test, Civil Code section 714, Gov. Code section 65850.5, zoning height limit), and the County's own Residential PV Eligibility & Structural Checklist for the expedited review path. 88% · municipal code

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 specific numeric ridge-setback distance was found in any Moraga, MOFD or Contra Costa County document reviewed. The County's Fire Safety Requirements do require 'a diagram of the roof layout of all panels, modules, clear access pathways and approximate locations of electrical disconnecting means and roof access points' as part of every submittal. MOFD's own current fire-code ordinance (26-01, 2025 CFC) could not be extracted -- its published document is served through an Akamai-gated document viewer whose PDF text stream could not be captured even with a CDP response interceptor (only a decoy PDF-embedder shell was returned); MOFD's own Forms & Applications and Permit Applications pages carry no dedicated solar/PV handout with pathway or setback specifics. 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 NEC 690.12 as incorporated into the 2023 NEC/2025 CEC statewide adoption; no Moraga- or MOFD-specific document was found that separately cites or amends section 690.12. 63% · adopting ordinance

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.

• Is a site plan / facility map placard required, and what must it show? Yes -- a roof-layout diagram showing all panel/module locations, clear access pathways, and the approximate locations of electrical disconnecting means and roof access points is a required part of every submittal (this functions as the site/facility-map placard-equivalent document). 85% · published checklist
• Does the UTILITY specify placards beyond the AHJ's? Yes -- PG&E Rule 21 section H.1.d requires a 'Visible Disconnect' with open/closed position markings, lockable and reachable 24/7, shown on the single-line diagram -- a utility-side signage requirement independent of the AHJ's. 80% · utility tariff

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 Rule 21 section H.1.d requires the disconnect be visible, lockable, reachable 24/7 and carry open/closed markings; no specific distance (e.g. '3 ft' or '10 ft') from the meter was found in any PG&E, Moraga or Contra Costa County document reviewed -- PG&E's more detailed Greenbook meter-proximity specification (TD-7001M/TD-2306M) is access-gated to PG&E-affiliated users and could not be retrieved. 65% · utility tariff
• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? No dedicated Town/county-approved equipment list found -- standard CEC-listed/UL-listed component requirements apply via the manufacturer spec-sheet submittal requirement. 55% · published checklist
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Yes -- batteries/ESS are permitted. Moraga-Orinda Fire District's current fee schedule ('Schedule of Fees for District Services, July 1, 2026') prices a dedicated 'Energy Storage Systems' fire construction permit (PR14.1, $1,151/permit) and a 'UL 9540A Modification' fee (PR14.3, $627/project), confirming ESS is a recognized, separately-permitted installation category with its own fire plan-review and inspection, applicable district-wide including Moraga. 85% · fee schedule
• Is there a separate ESS permit or inspection? Yes -- MOFD prices Energy Storage Systems (PR14.1, $1,151) as a fire construction permit distinct from Solar Photovoltaic Power Systems (PR14.2, $1,151); each bundles 1 plan review, 1 resubmittal, 1 inspection and 1 reinspection under 'FIRE CONSTRUCTION PERMITS.' The same fee schedule also carries a separate, smaller 'PR1.4 Cell Tower/Antenna/Land Use Review/Solar' fee ($720/project) under a 'Site Access Review: Preliminary Plan Review, Consulting, and Meetings' category -- an uncoordinated second fee line that may apply to solar jobs needing a preliminary site/land-use consultation before the PR14.2 construction-permit fee. It is not clear from the fee schedule alone whether every residential rooftop PV job actually triggers a MOFD permit in practice (vs. only ESS or non-exempt installs). 70% · fee schedule
• Is a ground mount treated as a structure? Likely yes, as an 'accessory structure' -- MMC 8.70.030 is a catch-all category for structures 'not otherwise subject to regulation as an accessory building, deck, pool, fence or wall,' expressly including 'arbors, pergolas, trellises, outdoor kitchens and fireplaces, and similar structures,' which a ground-mounted PV rack would most plausibly fall under. If so, it is subject to accessory-structure setbacks (3 ft side/rear if ≤8 ft height and set back ≥50 ft from the front property line; taller structures need Design Review Board approval) and, at ≥15 ft height, mandatory Design Review Board review. 70% · municipal code
• Is there a local rule on service upgrades or busbar sizing? No local Moraga amendment to busbar sizing exists (MMC Ch. 15.04 has only 4 sections and none address busbars -- control-checked absence). Contra Costa County's own expedited-eligibility checklist for residential PV requires the system be 'interconnected to a single-phase AC service panel of nominal 120/220 Vac with a bus bar rating of 200 A or less' as a condition of using the streamlined path -- an eligibility CEILING, not a minimum, the opposite direction from the Palm Springs-style 225A-minimum amendment pattern. 80% · published checklist
• Is a specific mounting system or attachment spacing required? Yes -- the County's 'Structural Criteria for Residential Flush-Mounted Rooftop Solar Arrays' worksheet requires: modules parallel to the roof plane with a 2in-10in gap to the roof surface; array weight capped at 4 psf (PV)/5 psf (thermal); array covering no more than half the total roof area; and a maximum horizontal anchor-spacing table (Table 1) varying by roof slope and rafter spacing, plus a wind-uplift/fastener check. 88% · 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 / Phone 78% · 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 88% · department page
• If delegated, to whom? Contra Costa County Building Inspection Division (Department of Conservation and Development) for building/electrical; Moraga-Orinda Fire District for fire, where a MOFD fire construction permit applies. 88% · 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? Building/electrical final inspection by Contra Costa County (after plan-check approval and fee payment); where a MOFD fire construction permit applies, MOFD separately performs its own plan review and field inspection under its own 'FIRE CONSTRUCTION PERMITS' bundle (1 plan review, 1 resubmittal, 1 inspection, 1 reinspection). The precise sequencing between the county's and MOFD's inspections for a given job was not documented in any single source found. 65% · department page

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 -- the County's Residential PV Eligibility & Structural Checklist functions as the published pre-inspection/plan-review checklist; no separate dedicated field-inspection checklist distinct from this document was found. 65% · published checklist
• What must be on site at inspection? Approved, stamped plan set (matching what was submitted/approved), the completed and initialed Eligibility Checklist, and manufacturer spec sheets for major components -- inferred from the county's own submittal/review-process description rather than an explicit 'bring these documents to inspection' instruction. 50% · department page
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Yes 80% · 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.

• What is issued on pass? Final (building-permit final-inspection sign-off / written authorization to operate the system) -- no separate Certificate of Occupancy is issued for a residential PV retrofit. County Ordinance Code 718-12.004(d), adopted by reference into MMC 15.12.010, independently bars operating the system unless 'the building official verifies in writing that it complies with the building permit.' 75% · municipal code
• Who notifies the utility for PTO? Installer 70% · utility tariff
• Is there a re-inspection fee? $150 per inspection trip (current Contra Costa County Land Development Fee Schedule, general reinspection line, applicable to building/electrical). Note: the county's own PV Eligibility Checklist (dated Nov 2015, still the live linked document as of today) separately warns of a stale $100 re-inspection fee tied specifically to non-compliant plan formatting -- both figures are reported since both documents are currently live. 85% · fee schedule
• How are corrections issued and cleared? Corrections are communicated by the plan reviewer by email or phone during plan review; applicants may authorize the reviewer to make minor red-line corrections directly on plans without further contact (per the Eligibility Checklist's initialed authorization clause). No formal written-notice-and-response timeline was found. 70% · department page