City of Clewiston

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, for any address inside the Clewiston city limits. The City is not the AHJ for Harlem, Sky Valley, Montura/Montura Ranch, Flaghole, Pioneer, Hookers Point or Tropical - those go to Hendry County, even though Clewiston Utilities supplies electricity to Harlem. 95% · department page
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? Both, in-house. The Community Development Department (121 Central Avenue, 863-983-1500, permitting@clewiston-fl.gov) permits and inspects building and electrical work. Code Sec. 18-1: 'The term building official in this chapter means the community development director.' Nothing is delegated to Hendry County or to a private firm - the FY2025-26 budget carries Department 1075 Protective Services with $177,804 Regular Salaries plus full FICA, retirement, 457 match, health/dental/life/AD&D, workers comp and LTD, i.e. real City employees. 90% · codified ordinance + adopted budget (https://www.clewiston-fl.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1829)
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes. Code Sec. 18-44: 'A permit will be required to do any alteration, construction or repair of a building or structure or make any changes or extensions.' The Permitting page quotes FBC 105.1. The City lists 'Solar Panels' by name as a Common Residential Permit under Property Exterior, and the codified fee schedule carries a dedicated line: 'Solar, Wind and Water Energy Generating Devices ... $65.00 (Ground, Wall, or Roof Mounted)'. 93% · department page + codified fee schedule (Appendix A, Sec. 3, item 24)
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Separate. The General Permit Application (rev. 01/2024) states: 'I further understand that a separate permit is required for building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical, signs, wells, pools, furnaces, boilers, heaters, tanks, roofing, and air-conditioning work.' The City publishes a Sub-Permit Application carrying a 'Master Permit #' field with an Electrical checkbox, and the FY2025-26 budget books 'Permits- Buildings' ($60,000), 'Permits Electric' ($10,000) and 'Plan Review' ($25,000) as three separate revenue lines. 90% · permit application form
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? No. There is no HOA or architectural-review gate in the Clewiston Code. A full harvest of all 42 top-level code nodes returns no homeowners-association approval requirement; the only two mentions of private covenants are Sec. 98-110(f) ('This article shall not impair any deed restriction, covenant or easement') and a Ch. 102 subdivision-design reference to homeowner associations maintaining common open space. Private deed restrictions may of course exist on a given parcel; the City does not enforce them. 70% · codified ordinance (full-corpus search)
• Is there a historic-district review? Yes, but only for listed or contributing properties. Code Sec. 98-88: 'A certificate of appropriateness must be obtained before making certain alterations ... affecting structures determined to make a significant contribution to an approved district as well as structures listed individually on the city register of historic places.' Three tiers: ordinary maintenance needs no COA; work that retains or restores the original appearance can be approved by the community development director; work that does not requires a COA from the CITY COMMISSION (Sec. 98-88(b)(3)). The enumerated regulated activities include 'Installation of new roofing materials, or removal of existing roofing materials when such new materials are of a different character than the existing materials' - a rooftop array on a contributing structure would sit close to that line. 80% · codified ordinance (Sec. 98-88)
• Is a wind or windstorm certification required? No separate windstorm certificate, but Florida Product Approval is required at application and wind design criteria must be shown on the plans. The Permitting page: 'ensure that you have all of the required documentation completed and any applicable State of Florida Product Approval numbers (FL) or Miami-Dade County Product Approval numbers (NOA) available at the time of application.' The residential plan-review checklist requires the plans to state basic wind speed (mph), wind importance factor and building category, wind exposure, the applicable internal pressure coefficient, and components-and-cladding design pressures. Clewiston is NOT in the HVHZ (Miami-Dade and Broward only); no ASCE 7 wind speed in mph is stated anywhere by the City. 75% · department page + plan review checklist
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? Not routinely, but there is a discretionary route to the City Commission and it is unusually easy to trip. Zoning Sec. 110-56 (Art. I, In General): 'Any use not expressly provided for. When an application is made for any use not expressly permitted or prohibited, the community development director shall consider that use which is expressly prohibited or permitted most closely similar or allied to that use requested. Upon doubt as to whether or not a specific use is similar to uses expressly prohibited or permitted, SUCH PERMIT SHALL BE WITHHELD UNTIL A REQUEST IS MADE TO THE CITY COMMISSION.' Solar is named nowhere in the zoning chapter, so a ground mount is exactly the kind of unlisted use this clause reaches. A separate special-exception power exists at Sec. 110-62 (City Commission, with mailed notice to owners within 200 feet at least seven days ahead) and a variance route at Sec. 110-58 et seq. A ROOFTOP array on a single-family dwelling should not need any of this - the dwelling is the permitted use. 72% · codified zoning ordinance
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? No zoning cap. The caps are all utility-side and they are in the Standard Interconnection Agreement and the net-metering FAQ: (a) GROSS POWER RATING MUST NOT EXCEED 90% OF THE CUSTOMER'S UTILITY DISTRIBUTION SERVICE RATING at that location - Sec. 8.01 - and if it does the customer pays for the service upgrade needed to get back under 90%; (b) eligible customer-owned renewable generation must have 'a generating capacity of less than 2 megawatts' (FAQ 4); (c) GPR for inverter-based systems is computed as total installed DC nameplate x 0.85. Tiers: Tier 1 <=10 kW, Tier 2 >10 kW, Tier 3 ~100 kW and above. NO AGGREGATE PROGRAMME CAP was found - unlike Winter Park's 256 kW citywide ceiling - and none appears in the Interconnection Agreement, the Tri-Party PPA, Appendix A or the FAQ. CAVEAT: the Tri-Party PPA Sec. 6.02(b) makes the agreement terminate on failure to comply with 'the ARP Net Metering Policy' - an FMPA instrument the City references but does not publish, and which at a sister FMPA All-Requirements city (Newberry) is the source of a 2.5%-of-peak-demand aggregate cap. So a cap may exist in an unpublished document. 80% · Standard Interconnection Agreement (rev. 10-21-2019) + net-metering FAQ

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 electrician / licensed contractor, registered with the City, OR the homeowner as owner-builder on a home they own and occupy. The Permitting page: 'The City requires proof of licensure and insurance from contractors who pull permits within the City, so be sure to instruct the contractor to obtain the permit in his name, not your name.' The General Permit Application has a separate 'Signature of Owner (if Owner/Builder)' line. 85% · department page + permit application form
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? Yes. The City issues its own trade certifications: the City's Sub-Contractor List form has a 'City Cert. #' column against a trade list that includes a dedicated 'Solar Systems' row (alongside Electric, Roofing, A/C & Heating etc.), and the FY2025-26 budget carries contractor certification revenue lines - Cert. Electrical, Cert. Plumbing, Cert. General Contractor, Cert. Air Conditioning, Cert. Roofing, Cert. Pool ($1,000 each budgeted for FY26, $0 in the two prior years). The Permitting page separately requires proof of licensure and insurance. 80% · department form + adopted budget
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes. City FAQ: 'Yes, you may perform work on a home that you own and occupy. It cannot be offered for sale or lease for one year after completion of the project. The office will provide an owner/builder affidavit with your permit application.' An Owner-Builder Affidavit Form and an Owner Builder Risky Business Checklist are both published, and the new-residential plan-review checklist cites the FS 489.103(7) homeowner affidavit. 92% · department FAQ

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? There is NO PV-specific submittal checklist. The general package is: completed General Permit Application (rev. 01/2024) with estimated value; a signed copy of the owner/contractor contract (Appendix A Sec. 4 - if no contract price is given the schedule's unit values are used); a SURVEY OF THE LAND (application acknowledgement 9: 'I understand that a survey of my land is required to be submitted for all permit applications for improvements to my property'); construction drawings; Florida Product Approval (FL) or Miami-Dade NOA numbers; a recorded Notice of Commencement; owner-builder affidavit if applicable; and for the electrical work a Sub-Permit Application against the master permit. The FAQ lists Site Plan, Building Elevations, Mechanical Plan, Signage Plan, Structural Plan, Electrical Plan, Foundation Plan, Landscaping Plan and Grading and Drainage Plan as documents that 'may be required' depending on scope. 70% · permit application form + FAQ
• How many copies, and in what format? Two (2) copies of drawings and two (2) copies of site plans, per the City's Plan Review Checklist for New One & Two Family Residential Structures. Electronic submission is available through the GovWell Citizen Portal; paper application PDFs are still published and permitting@clewiston-fl.gov is given as an application address. 50% · plan review checklist (undated, internally stale)
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes. Per the City's residential plan-review checklist: 'Site plans: Provide two (2) copies of single line drawings to scale (1:20 or 1:30 scale) showing property boundaries, lot dimensions, and location of proposed and existing structures on the lot, street in front of the property and street name. If located on a corner lot, indicate the names of streets, all easements, and conservation and / or wetland areas.' Separately, the General Permit Application requires a survey of the land for ALL permit applications. A standalone Site Plan Checklist is also published (DocumentCenter/View/133). 65% · plan review checklist + permit application
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No numeric threshold is published. The City's residential plan-review checklist states: 'All structural plans shall be signed and sealed by a design professional or be accompanied by an approved alternative design method authorized by the Building Commission.' The same checklist requires the structural design criteria - basic wind speed (mph), wind importance factor and building category, wind exposure, internal pressure coefficient, and components-and-cladding design pressures - to be shown on the construction plans. 55% · plan review checklist (stale)
• Is an electrical PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No local threshold. The statewide exemption in FS 471.003(2)(h) applies ($125,000 / 600A). Nothing in the Clewiston Code of Ordinances, the fee schedule, the permit applications or the published checklists sets an electrical PE-stamp trigger. 50% · inference from state statute against a proved local absence

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? GovWell Citizen Portal - https://app.govwell.com/clewiston. The Inspections page: 'The City of Clewiston Community Development Department uses the GovWell Citizen Portal to schedule and manage inspections. Through the portal, users can schedule, cancel, or reschedule inspections and pay any associated fees conveniently online.' The FY2025-26 budget carries a new 'Software & IT Services' line of $12,000 in Protective Services ($0 in both prior years), consistent with a recent portal purchase. 93% · department page
• Can the whole application be completed online? Partly, and the City has not said it is fully online. GovWell handles inspection scheduling, cancellation, rescheduling and fee payment. But the City still publishes paper application PDFs (General Permit Application rev. 01/2024, Sub-Permit Application) and gives permitting@clewiston-fl.gov as an address 'For applications', and the Permit Applications page lists permit types as plain text with only a handful linked to PDFs - 'Solar Panels' has no linked form at all. 55% · department pages + published forms
• What does a residential solar permit cost? $65.00 for the solar device itself - codified fee schedule Appendix A, Sec. 3, item 24: 'Solar, Wind and Water Energy Generating Devices .....$65.00 (Ground, Wall, or Roof Mounted)'. Add a plan review fee of 30% of the base building permit fee (Sec. 3, item 27) and, because electrical is a separate permit, an electrical minimum fee of $65.00 (Sec. 1, item 1). Re-inspection is $60.00. Indicative total for a straightforward rooftop retrofit: about $150-$200. Utility side is separate: Tier 1 (<=10 kW) pays NO interconnection application fee; Tier 2 pays $320.00; Tier 3 pays $470.00. 75% · codified fee schedule (Appendix A, Ord. No. 2016-09, 9-19-2016)
• How is the fee calculated? The schedule contradicts itself and both readings are recorded. READING A - FLAT: item 24 states a bare '$65.00' exactly as items 14-23 and 26 do (Pre-engineered utility shed $65, Fences $65, Demolition $65, Tent $65), which read as flat fees. READING B - VALUATION: Sec. 3's preamble says 'The following fees shall be based on a bona fide contract price (contract to be furnished) or unit prices to determine a value. Where a value is determined for the permit, the permit fee shall be based upon the valuation of permit fees to determine the applicable base permit fee(s)', and Sec. 4 then sets the valuation ladder - $65.00 base for values $1.00-$1,999.00, plus $4.00 for each fraction of $1,000.00 up to $149,999.00; $664.00 at $150,000.00 plus $5.00 per additional $1,000.00. Under reading B a $20,000 system would be about $137 in base building fee. Minimum fee is $65.00 per permit either way, paid at application and credited at issuance. 65% · codified fee schedule (Appendix A, Secs. 3 and 4)
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? Yes. Appendix A, Sec. 3, item 27: 'Plan review fee .....30% of the base building permit fee'. The FY2025-26 budget books it as a separate revenue line (001-322130 Plan Review, $25,000). Item 25 also carries a separate 'Energy Code Review .....45.00'. 88% · codified 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? 'Please allow 1 to 2 weeks for minimal plan review and 3 to 4 weeks for extensive plan review. You will be notified when a permit is ready to be issued.' A 24-hour turnaround is referenced as the norm that permits in the Special Flood Hazard Area will NOT receive ('Because of added review requirements, permits issued within the SFHA will not receive a 24-hour turnaround'). 80% · department FAQ
• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? 180 days. General Permit Application: 'This permit becomes null and void if work or construction authorized is not commenced within 180 days, or if construction or work is suspended or abandoned for a period of 180 days at any time after work is commenced.' The FAQ adds: 'Building permits are valid for a period of 180 days. Construction must commence within that 180-day window, and at least one inspection must be passed by an inspector.' A Permit Extension costs $65.00 (Appendix A, Sec. 3, item 43) and renewal of an expired permit is 50% of the original fee (item 18). 92% · permit application form + FAQ + codified fee schedule
• Which utility handles interconnection here? CLEWISTON UTILITIES - the City's OWN municipal electric utility, run as an enterprise fund of the City of Clewiston. It is an All-Requirements Project (ARP) participant of the Florida Municipal Power Agency (FMPA), which is its exclusive wholesale supplier under an All-Requirements Power Supply Contract dated 24 May 1991. The City owns no generating plant of its own but holds an interest in the St. Lucie Nuclear Power Plant. ~4,000 customers, 26 employees, serving the City of Clewiston AND the Harlem community. NO investor-owned or cooperative utility serves inside the city limits. 96% · utility department page + codified rate ordinance + adopted budget + FMPA member roster (https://www.fmpa.com/members/)
• Where does the utility sit in the sequence? BEFORE the install and again BEFORE energisation - the utility bookends the job. Order per the City's own Interconnection and Net Metering Customer Checklist: (1) submit the Application for Interconnection to Clewiston Utilities (Tier 2 pays $320, Tier 3 pays $470; Tier 1 no fee); (2) WAIT for utility approval before proceeding with installation; (3) install; (4) submit certification of compliance with IEEE 1547 (2018), IEEE 1547.1 (2005), UL 1741 (2010), the NEC and local codes, plus the manufacturer's installation/O&M instructions and proof of general liability insurance; (5) pass local code inspection and give the utility a copy of that approval; (6) execute the Standard Interconnection Agreement AND the Tri-Party Net Metering Power Purchase Agreement (Customer, City, FMPA); (7) give at least 10 business days' written notice of the intended in-service date - the utility may require a utility or city official to be present at activation; (8) utility sends written notice that parallel operation may commence. 92% · utility interconnection checklist (rev. 10-21-2019)

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? NEC 2020, effective 31 December 2023. The City's own Permitting page states it in first-party words: 'Also, the 2020 National Electrical Code will become effective on December 31, 2023.' Hendry County's Building & Licensing page prints the identical notice. 95% · department page
• Which building code edition is in force? Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023), effective 31 December 2023. The Permitting page carries the notice verbatim. Code Sec. 18-68 is a FLOATING adoption naming no edition: 'there is hereby adopted by reference the Florida Building Code.' 93% · department page + codified ordinance (Sec. 18-68)
• Which fire code edition is in force? Florida Fire Prevention Code, adopted by floating reference. Code Sec. 38-27: 'The Florida Fire Prevention Code and state standards are hereby adopted by reference as if fully set forth in this article.' No edition is named, so the current 8th Edition (2023) applies by operation of the floating adoption. MATERIAL FOR A PV JOB: Sec. 38-30 limits the fire inspector's duty to 'all buildings and premises, EXCEPT PRIVATE DWELLINGS' - so a one- or two-family rooftop PV job gets no City fire inspection at all. 80% · codified ordinance (Secs. 38-27, 38-30)
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes, but ONLY administrative and ONLY about flood. Code Sec. 18-70 (Ord. No. 2015-01, 4-20-2015) adopts three administrative amendments to the Florida Building Code, Building: a new Sec. 104.10.1 requiring the building official to coordinate with the floodplain administrator on requests to modify flood-resistant construction requirements; a new Sec. 107.6.1 stating that the authority to issue permits on the basis of affidavits under FBC 105.14/107.6 'shall not extend to the flood load and flood resistance construction requirements'; and a new Sec. 117 routing flood-hazard variances to the floodplain management ordinance. THERE ARE NO LOCAL TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS of any kind - no local electrical, mechanical, structural or energy amendments exist in the Code. 90% · codified ordinance (Sec. 18-70)
• What is the installation judged against? Florida Building Code 8th Edition (2023) and NEC 2020, plus - and these are the local layers that actually bite on a Clewiston PV job - (a) Ch. 98 Art. V floodplain management, in particular Sec. 98-125(a)(5) requiring mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems to be above the design flood elevation; (b) zoning Sec. 110-530(e)(1), 'Utility meters and related conduits shall be located on side or rear walls and conduits located other than in the rear of the building shall be painted to match either the wall or trim color'; and (c) zoning Sec. 110-530(f)(1), 'Mechanical equipment shall be installed in a side or rear yard.' 85% · codified zoning and floodplain ordinances

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 local ridge setback or access pathway rule. The Florida Fire Prevention Code applies by floating adoption (Sec. 38-27) and supplies whatever pathway requirements exist. Practically, Code Sec. 38-30 limits the City fire inspector's duty to 'all buildings and premises, except private dwellings', so a one- or two-family rooftop PV job is not fire-reviewed or fire-inspected by the City at all. 65% · codified ordinance (Secs. 38-27, 38-30)

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, by force of the NEC 2020 adopted statewide and named by the City itself - NEC 690.12 rapid shutdown. Clewiston does not restate, amend or supplement it: the full code corpus returns zero hits for 'rapid shutdown', '690.12' and '705'. 75% · department page (NEC edition) + proved local absence

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? NONE beyond the NEC. Neither the City nor Clewiston Utilities requires any PV placard. This is the notable finding on the utility side: the Standard Interconnection Agreement requires a manual disconnect switch in detail (Sec. 12.01, see Q48) but specifies NO sign, label, placard or marking anywhere in its seven pages. The Tri-Party PPA and its Appendix A carry none. The Metering Enclosure and Equipment Standards (rev. 10-8-25) carry no PV marking rule. NEC 2020 labelling (690, 705, 706 where applicable) is therefore the whole requirement. 78% · utility interconnection agreement + utility metering standard + site-wide document search
• Does the authority specify placard wording of its own? No. The City specifies no placard wording of its own, in the Code, the fee schedule, the permit applications, the plan-review checklists or any published utility document. 78% · proved absence across code, forms and utility documents
• Does it specify letter height, colour or material? No PV-specific letter height, colour or material rule. TWO LOOK-ALIKE RULES EXIST IN THE UTILITY'S METERING STANDARD AND NEITHER REACHES A ROOFTOP PV JOB - DO NOT CARRY THEM OVER. (1) 'The use of a permanent marker or stamping of the enclosure will be acceptable for interior markings only. Exterior markings must be stamped or labeled with permanently affixed metal or plastic name plates. Numbers must be a minimum of 1/4 inch high to be acceptable. Use of plastic labeling tape, nameplates, or numbers fastened solely with adhesive backing is prohibited.' - that paragraph sits under 'The following provisions are applicable to MULTIPLE-OCCUPANCY DWELLINGS' and is about identifying which apartment each meter serves. (2) '...MUST BE PERMANENTLY MARKED AS 480V UTILITY DISCONNECT WITH A NON-FERROUS METAL OR PLASTIC PLATE THAT IS RIVETED TO THE ENCLOSURE' - scoped to 480 volt 4-wire services of 400 A or less. 80% · utility metering and equipment standard (rev. 10-8-25, OCR'd)
• Does the UTILITY specify placards beyond the AHJ's? No. Clewiston Utilities specifies no placards at all - see Q38. What it DOES specify, and what no AHJ document mentions, is hardware: a manual visible-load-break disconnect switch on every tier (Q48), a utility-owned bidirectional meter at a single metering point (Interconnection Agreement Sec. 13.01), and a UL 1741 utility-interactive inverter certified by an OSHA-approved NRTL (Sec. 6.01). 78% · Standard Interconnection Agreement (rev. 10-21-2019)

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? REQUIRED ON EVERY TIER, INCLUDING TIER 1 - NO SMALL-SYSTEM EXEMPTION. Standard Interconnection Agreement Sec. 12.01, verbatim: 'Customer shall install a manual disconnect switch of the visible load break type to provide a separation point between the AC power output of the customer-owned renewable generation system and any Customer wiring connected to Utility's electric system such that back feed from the customer-owned renewable generation system to Utility's electric system cannot occur when the switch is in the open position. For Tier 1 customers this will be at the Utility's expense and subject to the approval of the cost by Utility, for Tier 2 and Tier 3 customers this will be at the Customers expense. THE MANUAL DISCONNECT SWITCH SHALL BE MOUNTED SEPARATE FROM THE METER SOCKET ON AN EXTERIOR SURFACE ADJACENT TO THE METER. The switch shall be readily accessible to Utility and capable of being locked in the open position with a Utility padlock. When locked and tagged in the open position by Utility, this switch will be under the control of Utility.' Sec. 12.02 lets the utility open it WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE (door hanger left afterwards). Sec. 9.02 requires 'the correct operation of the manual switch [to be] demonstrated to a Utility representative' before parallel operation is authorised. THE TIER 1 COST RULE IS UNUSUAL AND WORTH KNOWING: for a domestic <=10 kW system the UTILITY pays for the switch, and if the contractor's proposed installation cost exceeds what the utility can do it for, the utility installs it itself and the customer must give it reasonable access. 93% · Standard Interconnection Agreement for Customer-Owned Renewable Generation System (rev. 10-21-2019)
• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? Yes, in two separate senses. (1) BUILDING SIDE: Florida Product Approval. The Permitting page requires 'any applicable State of Florida Product Approval numbers (FL) or Miami-Dade County Product Approval numbers (NOA) available at the time of application'. (2) UTILITY SIDE: Interconnection Agreement Sec. 6.01 - 'The inverter shall be considered certified for interconnected operation if it has been submitted by a manufacturer to a nationally recognized testing laboratory (NRTL) to comply with UL 1741. The NRTL shall be approved by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA).' Sec. 4.01 additionally requires certified compliance with IEEE 1547 (2018), IEEE 1547.1 (2005) and UL 1741 (2010), and Sec. 4.02 requires a copy of the manufacturer's installation, operation and maintenance instructions to be given to the utility. 88% · Standard Interconnection Agreement + department page
• Are batteries permitted, and under what conditions? Permitted, with NO local conditions of any kind. Clewiston has no energy-storage provision anywhere - not in the Code (a full 42-node harvest returns no 'energy storage' and no battery reference outside assault-and-battery, scrap-metal and hazardous-waste contexts), not in the fee schedule, not in the zoning chapter, and not in the utility's interconnection documents, which address 'customer-owned renewable generation' and never mention storage. FBC 8th Ed. (2023), NEC 2020 Art. 706 and the Florida Fire Prevention Code are therefore the whole of it. Note that Sec. 98-125(a)(5) would put a ground-level battery enclosure in a flood hazard area above the design flood elevation, and zoning Sec. 110-530(f)(1) would push it to a side or rear yard. 65% · proved absence across codified ordinance and utility documents
• Is a ground mount treated as a structure? Not named anywhere - and this has to be flagged, not asserted. Neither 'ground mount' nor 'solar' appears in the zoning chapter. The best reading of the published text: a ground array on a single-family lot is a 'customary accessory structure incidental thereto' under Sec. 110-193(1) (R-1A permitted uses), which pulls in Sec. 110-526 - maximum gross floor area 600 sq ft, roof peaks not to exceed 12 feet, no more than one detached accessory structure per 8,000 sq ft of lot area to a maximum of two, must be 'painted and designed to blend aesthetically with the principal building', and accessory setbacks by district (R-1A front 80 ft, rear 15 ft, side interior 10 ft, side corner 20 ft; R-1B/R-1C/R-2 front 60 ft, rear 10 ft, side interior 7.5 ft). Ground coverage in R-1A is capped at 25% of the lot. A competing reading treats the array as 'mechanical equipment' under Sec. 110-530(f)(1), which requires it in a side or rear yard and, if in a side yard, no closer than five feet to the front facade. The two readings give different answers and the code does not choose between them. 55% · codified zoning ordinance (Secs. 110-193, 110-194, 110-526, 110-530)
• Is there a local rule on service upgrades or busbar sizing? No local busbar or service-upgrade rule. The only service-side document is the Clewiston Utilities Metering Enclosure and Equipment Standards, revision date 10-8-25 (24 pages, scanned, no text layer - read by rendering at 200 dpi and OCRing). It governs meter sockets, CT cabinets, raceways, conductor colour coding and service disconnects, and it contains ZERO occurrences of solar, photovoltaic, renewable, PV, inverter or cogeneration. Its one relevant general rule is that its requirements 'are in addition to requirements of the latest version of the National Electrical Code and requirements of local code enforcement agencies' and that 'Failure to comply may result in service being denied.' Separately, the Interconnection Agreement's 90%-of-service-rating cap (Sec. 8.01) is the nearest thing to a service-upgrade trigger: exceed it and the customer pays for the upgrade. 70% · utility construction standard (rev. 10-8-25)

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, email or phone. Inspections page: 'The City of Clewiston Community Development Department uses the GovWell Citizen Portal to schedule and manage inspections... To request via portal: GovWell Citizen Portal. To request via email: permitting@clewiston-fl.gov. To request via phone: (863) 983-1500, Monday - Friday 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM.' 92% · department page
• Are same-day or AM/PM windows offered? Not published for ordinary inspections. What IS published is a paid alternative: Appendix A, Sec. 3, item 22 - 'Personalized Inspections .....45.00 per hour ($120.00 minimum) plus $2.50 per mile if outside of City.' For private-provider jobs the City requires notice 'received by 2:00 PM on the prior working day', which implies next-working-day scheduling but says nothing about AM/PM windows. 55% · codified fee schedule + private provider instructions

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 - the City's own inspectors perform the final, unless the owner elects a registered private provider under FS 553.791. The FAQ refers to 'Your City's certified building and fire inspectors and plans examiners'. The utility then separately requires proof of that approval: Interconnection Agreement Sec. 5.01 - 'Prior to commencing parallel operation with Utility's electric system, Customer shall have the customer-owned renewable generation system inspected and approved by the appropriate code authorities having jurisdiction. Customer shall provide a copy of this inspection and approval to Utility.' Sec. 5.02 additionally gives the utility its own right to inspect, before and after energisation. 85% · department FAQ + utility interconnection agreement
• If delegated, to whom? Not delegated. The optional third party is a private provider chosen by the OWNER under FS 553.791, not an arrangement of the authority. Clewiston publishes a Private Provider Form, Private Provider Inspection Instructions (2024) and a Private Provider Registration Checklist, and REQUIRES REGISTRATION WITH BUILDING OPERATIONS BEFORE COMMENCING WORK. Its registration document list goes beyond what FS 553.791(4) enumerates (contact information, licensure, insurance): Clewiston also demands resumes for the provider and each duly authorised representative, a SIGNED AND NOTARISED Duly Authorized Representatives Employment Affidavit, copies of the driver's licence of the provider and every authorised employee, and a Workers' Compensation certificate naming the City of Clewiston as Certificate Holder. Its inspection instructions add a per-inspection advance notice rule - 'The notification must be received by 2:00 PM on the prior working day' - which the current statute does not itself impose. 80% · private provider registration checklist and inspection instructions (2024) + FS 553.791

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.

Nothing recorded for City of Clewiston on this step yet — 2 questions checked and found unpublished. The guidance above is general.

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. There is no published inspection checklist of any kind, and no PV inspection sequence. The City publishes plan-review checklists (new one- and two-family, new commercial, pool, sign, site plan, demolition) but no inspection checklist. A site-wide search for 'photovoltaic' with a working positive control returns three documents, all net-metering. 70% · department document listing + site-wide search with controls
• What must be on site at inspection? A recorded Notice of Commencement must be ON FILE WITH THE CITY BEFORE ANY INSPECTION - Private Provider Inspection Instructions: 'Pursuant to FS 713.13, a copy of a recorded Notice of Commencement is required to be on file with the City of Clewiston Building Department prior to preforming any inspections.' On private-provider jobs, 'Records of all required and completed inspections, including any photographs shall be maintained at the building site at all times', and each completed inspection record must be posted at the site before the provider leaves. THE NOC THRESHOLD IS CONTRADICTED BY THE CITY'S OWN TWO DOCUMENTS: the General Permit Application says 'Any work valued over $2500 requires you to file a Notice of Commencement with the County Clerk, per FL Statue 713.13 (1)(b)'; the FAQ says 'NOCs are required if the work value is more than $5,000.' Both recorded, neither picked. 65% · private provider instructions + permit application + FAQ

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 Certificate of Occupancy or a Certificate of Completion (or a temporary version of either). FAQ: 'The Certificate of Occupancy is the final construction document that authorizes occupancy of a structure.' The private-provider instructions describe the end state precisely: 'Building Department staff shall verify that any observed code deficiencies were resolved. Building Department staff shall verify all other agencies requirements are met and all appropriate fees are paid, prior to issuing a Certificate of Occupancy or Completion or a Temporary Certificate of Occupancy or Completion.' A PV retrofit on an occupied dwelling will attract a Certificate of Completion rather than a CO. 70% · private provider instructions + department FAQ
• Who notifies the utility for PTO? THE INSTALLER/CUSTOMER, in writing, twice. Interconnection Agreement Sec. 5.01 makes the customer give the utility a copy of the local code inspection and approval. Sec. 5.02: 'At least ten (10) business days prior to initially placing the customer-owned renewable generation system in service, Customer shall provide written notification to Utility advising Utility of the date and time at which Customer intends to place the system in service, and Utility shall have the right to have personnel present on the in-service date.' The Customer Checklist adds that 'The utility may require a utility or city official to be present for activation.' The utility then closes the loop: Sec. 9.02 - once the documentation is received and the correct operation of the manual switch has been demonstrated to a utility representative, 'Utility will, within ten (10) business days, send written notice that parallel operation of the customer-owned renewable generation system may commence.' The AHJ does not notify the utility. 92% · Standard Interconnection Agreement + interconnection customer checklist
• Is there a re-inspection fee? $60.00. Appendix A, Sec. 3, item 19: 'Reinspection Fee .....60.00'. The FY2025-26 budget carries a matching revenue line (001-329430 Reinspection Fee, $1,000). There is no free first re-inspection and no per-trade multiplier. 88% · codified fee schedule + adopted budget
• How are corrections issued and cleared? Published only for the private-provider route: 'A deficiency notice must be posted at the job site by the private provider, the duly authorized representative of the private provider, or the building department whenever a noncomplying item related to the building code or the permitted documents is found. After corrections are made, the item must be re-inspected by the private provider or representative before being concealed.' The provider must report pass or fail to the Building Department within 2 business days and post the completed inspection record at the site before leaving. Work found not to match the permitted plans requires a formal plan revision, with the provider's affidavits, submitted back to the Building Department (revisions are priced at Appendix A Sec. 3 as part of the plan review fee structure). 55% · private provider inspection instructions (2024)