Escambia County

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 — Escambia County Building Services Department is the AHJ for residential solar in the unincorporated county, in the Town of Century, and on Pensacola Beach (subject to SRIA prior approval); it is NOT the AHJ inside the City of Pensacola, which self-permits. 92% · adopting ordinance + form
• What does this authority permit itself, and what does it delegate? Both — the county's Building Services Department issues and inspects both building and electrical permits itself (Sec. 14-28, 14-84). It is not delegated to another county department; fire plan review for PV that needs it would route through the applicable fire authority, not Building Services. 85% · adopting ordinance
• Is a permit required for a residential rooftop PV system? Yes, a permit is required for residential rooftop PV. 95% · adopting ordinance
• Is there a separate electrical permit, or is it combined? Separate — the county has no single 'solar permit'; PV is filed as a scope line ('Solar Photovoltaic') on the standard Electrical Permit Application, and if the array's attachment method requires structural plan review a separate Building permit is also pulled (Sec. 14-84 requires a permit 'first' for each regulated system). 72% · permit application form
• Is a HOA or architectural approval required first? No — Escambia County Building Services does not itself require HOA or architectural approval as a permit prerequisite for residential rooftop PV in the unincorporated area; no such requirement appears anywhere in Ch. 14. (Florida's Solar Rights Act, F.S. 163.04, separately restricts what a private HOA covenant may prohibit, but that is a private-covenant law, not a county permitting requirement, and is enforced by the property owner against the HOA rather than by the county.) 68% · adopting ordinance
• Is there a historic-district review? No dedicated historic-district architectural review process was found at the county level for the unincorporated area. A Municode full-text search of the entire county code for 'historic district' returns 13 hits; none describes a design/architectural review board — the only historic-related provision found is an ad valorem TAX EXEMPTION program (Sec. 90-175), not a permitting review. (The City of Pensacola, a separate AHJ, does run its own Architectural Review Board for its historic districts — see its Solar Information page — but that does not apply in unincorporated Escambia County.) 65% · adopting ordinance
• Is a wind or windstorm certification required? No separate 'windstorm certification' document is required, but the installation must be designed to the location-specific ultimate design wind speed. The county has its own current wind-speed-lines memo (established 'within Escambia County, Florida' under FBC Sec. 1609): for Risk Category II buildings (which includes single-family residences), Vult runs from 140 mph (north of the Canoe Creek/I-10 line) up to 160 mph at the Gulf shoreline, including the City of Pensacola and Pensacola Beach. The windborne debris region is defined identically to the rest of Florida as anywhere Vult ≥ 140 mph — which covers the great majority of the county, including all of Pensacola and Pensacola Beach. 82% · adopting regulation
• Is a Specific Use Permit or Council approval ever required? No — a Specific Use Permit or Board of County Commissioners approval is not required for a standard residential rooftop PV installation; it is processed as an administrative building/electrical permit. A ground-mount array would be reviewed as an accessory structure under the Land Development Code (Ch. 4, Art. 7, Sec. 4-7.3) against general accessory-use setback/height rules rather than as a special-use case — no PV-specific use category (unlike the LDC's dedicated 'small wind energy systems' provision) currently exists in the LDC. 62% · zoning ordinance
• Is there a system-size cap on residential generation? No county-imposed system-size cap was found for residential rooftop generation. The effective size limits residential customers actually face come from the utility's net-metering tier rules, not the AHJ: FPL's Tier 1 requires the system be 10 kW AC or less and not exceed 90% of the customer's utility service rating, and estimated production under 115% of annual consumption; EREC allows member-owned renewable generation up to 25 kW to interconnect under its Standard Interconnection Agreement, with different rules above that. 75% · utility DG manual

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 — a state-certified/registered electrical contractor (EC/ER) or state-certified solar contractor (CVC, F.S. 489.105) may pull it, or the property owner may self-permit as owner-builder. 75% · adopting ordinance + form
• Must the contractor be registered with this authority before applying? No local certification is required if the contractor already holds Florida state certification — Sec. 18-33(a): 'This article shall not apply to contractors certified by the state construction industry licensing board insofar as certification in the county is concerned. However, such state certified contractors shall provide their names, state licenses, business addresses, telephone numbers, and required proof of insurance to the county contractor competency board for inspection.' Only contractors who are locally (not state) registered must hold an Escambia County certificate of competency before applying. 88% · adopting ordinance
• Is a homeowner permitted to self-install and self-permit? Yes — an owner-builder may self-install and self-permit; the county's Building Permit Application carries an Owner/Builder Disclosure route (B&P/F.S. 489.103 exemption pattern used statewide in Florida). 65% · permit application form

Almost everywhere wants a site plan, a one-line or three-line electrical diagram, equipment cut sheets with listings, and a structural attachment detail. Build it against the published checklist rather than the last jurisdiction you worked in — the checklist is what the reviewer marks against.

• What documents make up a complete submittal? No dedicated solar/PV checklist is published by the county. What IS required, from the general submittal-document ordinance (Ch. 14, Art. IX): construction documents 'dimensioned and drawn on suitable material' bearing the name and signature of the person responsible for the design (Sec. 14-134); a site plan per Sec. 14-139 unless waived for alteration/repair work; structural information per FBC Sec. 1603 keyed to the ASCE-7 Hazard Tool for the site's location where structural review is triggered (Sec. 14-142); and, per Sec. 14-96(5), a Florida PE-sealed electrical design only if the electrical system's value exceeds $125,000 or service capacity exceeds 600A residential (rarely triggered by a residential PV retrofit). 62% · adopting ordinance
• How many copies, and in what format? Electronic media is accepted ('Electronic media documents are permitted to be submitted when approved by the building official or designee,' Sec. 14-134); applications may be filed 'in writing or online' (Sec. 14-93) through the MyGovernmentOnline (MGO) portal. No fixed number of paper copies is specified. 70% · adopting ordinance
• Is a site plan required, and what must it show? Yes, generally — Sec. 14-139 requires a site plan 'showing to scale the size and location of new construction and existing structures on the site, distances from lot lines and existing structures, the established street grades and the proposed finished grades and, as applicable, flood hazard areas.' The same section lets the building official 'waive or modify the requirement for a site plan when the application for permit is for alteration or repair' — a straightforward roof-mount PV retrofit would typically qualify for that waiver in practice, though this is not stated as a blanket solar exemption. 68% · adopting ordinance
• Is a structural PE stamp required, and at what threshold? No county-stated dollar/size threshold specific to PV structural attachment. General Sec. 14-142 requires construction documents to 'provide the information specified in Section 1603 of the Florida Building Code, Building' with 'structural design ... governed by location using ASCE-7 Hazard Tool' — which typically requires an engineer/architect of record only where the Florida Building Code itself calls for one (e.g., where a product approval / Notice of Acceptance for the specific attachment method is not used). No separate PE-stamp dollar threshold like the electrical one exists for structural work in the county's text. 58% · adopting ordinance
• Is an electrical PE stamp required, and at what threshold? A Florida-registered engineer's seal is required only where the electrical system's value exceeds $125,000, OR the aggregate residential service capacity exceeds 600 amperes at 240V (800A for commercial/industrial) — Sec. 14-96(5), citing F.S. Sec. 471.003(2)(h). A typical residential PV retrofit is far below both thresholds and would not trigger this. 88% · adopting ordinance

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? MyGovernmentOnline (MGO) — the same statewide permitting portal used by the City of Pensacola. Applications, plan review status, and inspection scheduling are all handled through mygovernmentonline.org (citizen/contractor login) plus a phone IVR system (850-273-4864) for scheduling inspections. 85% · department page
• Can the whole application be completed online? Yes for most of the process — applications, document upload, plan-review status, payment and inspection scheduling can all be done online through MGO ('Inspections can be easily be scheduled online... Contractors are able to create a login and manage projects easily'). No evidence was found of Escambia County adopting SolarAPP+ instant permitting specifically (Florida generally has very few SolarAPP+ jurisdictions and I could not confirm Escambia as one), so this is standard portal-based online processing, not instant/automated permitting. 75% · department page
• How is the fee calculated? Valuation-based. Sec. 14-165: 'Permit valuations shall include total value of work, including materials and labor, for which the permit is being issued, such as electrical, gas, mechanical, plumbing equipment and permanent systems.' The applicant must provide an estimated value and the building official sets the final valuation used to compute the fee. 72% · adopting ordinance
• Is there a separate plan-check fee? Likely yes for some component — Sec. 14-164(4) lists 'Plans examination' as one of the enumerated fee categories the county may charge separately from the permit fee itself, but the actual amount (and any residential single-family exemption, as the neighboring City of Pensacola's own ordinance grants) is set in the unlocated BOCC fee resolution, not in the code text. 55% · adopting ordinance

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? Two tracks. Standard track: a building permit for a single-family residential dwelling 'must be issued within 30 working days of application therefor unless unusual circumstances require a longer time' (Sec. 14-99), which matches the state's F.S. 553.792 (as amended by 2026 HB 803) 30-business-day track for a single-family electrical permit at/above $15,000. Faster track: the county actively offers Florida's private-provider plan-review/inspection program (F.S. 553.791, 5-business-day statutory clock) — evidenced by its own published Private Provider Registration Form, which requires that if private-provider plan review is used, private-provider inspection must be used too. 85% · adopting ordinance + form
• How long is an issued permit valid before it expires? 180 days. Sec. 14-110: 'Every permit issued shall become invalid unless the work on the site authorized by such permit is commenced within 180 days after its issuance, or if the work authorized ... is suspended or abandoned for a period of 180 days after the time the work is commenced.' The building official may grant one or more extensions, each up to 180 days, on written request with justifiable cause. 93% · adopting ordinance
• Which utility handles interconnection here? Two utilities split the county. Florida Power & Light (FPL) — which absorbed Gulf Power in 2021 — serves Pensacola and most of the populated county; Escambia River Electric Cooperative (EREC), headquartered in Jay, FL, serves rural northern Escambia County. The county's own shared Electrical Permit Application form has the applicant check one of exactly two boxes: 'Gulf Power' (now FPL) or 'Escambia River Electric (EREC)' — confirming these are the only two utilities the county recognizes for this purpose. 85% · permit application form
• Where does the utility sit in the sequence? After permit — both utilities' own interconnection paperwork make grid connection conditional on the county's inspection/approval happening first. FPL's Tier 1 Interconnection Agreement Sec. 3.4: 'The Customer agrees to provide Local Building Code Official inspection and certification of installation. The certification shall reflect that the local code official has inspected and certified that the installation was permitted, has been approved...' EREC's Standard Interconnection Agreement requires documentation '[SENT TO EREC FROM LOCAL CODE OFFICIALS] that the member-owned renewable generation has been inspected and approved by local code officials prior to its operation in parallel with EREC's electric distribution system.' 90% · utility DG/interconnection agreement

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? 2020 NEC — carried in by reference through the Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023), which the county adopts by Sec. 14-26/14-28. The county's own code text never states 'NEC 2020' as such (electrical work is governed via 'the Florida Building Code' generally, per Sec. 14-96/14-152), so this edition number is inference from the known statewide FBC-NEC linkage rather than a literal county citation. 75% · adopting ordinance
• Which building code edition is in force? Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023). Sec. 14-28(a): 'These Escambia County regulations, along with the 8th edition of the Florida Building Code 2023 as implemented by the State of Florida shall hereinafter be referred to as "this code."' 97% · adopting ordinance
• Which fire code edition is in force? The Florida Fire Prevention Code, adopted by reference at Sec. 14-38 ('For provisions related to fire prevention, refer to the Florida Fire Prevention Code'). The county's own text does not name a specific edition number; the current statewide edition is the 8th Edition (2023), based on NFPA 1 (2021) and NFPA 101 (2021). 68% · adopting ordinance
• Are there local amendments to any of the above? Yes. Sec. 14-27: 'The Florida Building Code adopted in section 14-26 is hereby amended as set forth in article III through article XIX' — i.e., the whole administrative/procedural structure of Ch. 14 (permits, fees, inspections, floodplain management, etc.) IS the county's local amendment set. On top of that, County Ordinance No. 2015-37 adds Santa-Rosa-Island-specific technical amendments (coastal high hazard/elevation requirements under ASCE 24) applicable only within SRIA's jurisdiction on Pensacola Beach. 90% · adopting ordinance
• What is the installation judged against? The Florida Building Code (Building/Residential, incorporating the NEC by reference for electrical work), the Florida Fire Prevention Code for fire-safety matters, and the county's own procedural amendments in Ch. 14 Art. III-XIX — plus, for structural/wind design specifically, the county's own current wind-speed-lines determination (ASCE 7-22 basis) referenced at Sec. 14-142. 80% · adopting ordinance

Ridge setbacks and roof access pathways are fire-service requirements and they constrain the array layout. They are the most common cause of a redesign after the fire department comments on a plan set.

Nothing recorded for Escambia County on this step yet — 1 question checked and found unpublished. The guidance above is general.

Which rapid-shutdown rule applies follows directly from the NEC edition in force, and the initiation device has to be at a location the fire service can reach and identify. This is inspected, and it is labelled.

• Is rapid shutdown required, and to which NEC edition? Rapid shutdown is required by the 2020 NEC's Article 690.12, which applies statewide via the Florida Building Code, 8th Edition (2023) that Escambia adopts by reference (Sec. 14-26/14-28). No county-specific rapid-shutdown text exists — a Municode full-text search of the whole county code for 'rapid shutdown' returns 0 hits, consistent with the requirement flowing entirely from the adopted NEC edition rather than a local ordinance. 70% · 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.

• Which placards does this authority require at the service equipment? The county itself specifies no placards of its own for PV (0 hits for 'placard' relevant to solar in a full-text search of the county code). What actually governs placarding here is the interconnecting utility: FPL requires (a) a sign at the meter noting the disconnect switch's location, and (b) a warning sign on the disconnect itself stating 'that both sides of the switch may be energized'; for any battery storage behind the meter, FPL requires 'a placard ... permanently affixed to the meter enclosure stating "Battery storage utilized in this facility."' EREC's own paperwork does not specify placard wording of its own beyond requiring the installation to satisfy 'any other electrical/building code requirements by the Authority Having Jurisdiction' (i.e., the NEC's own required labels, e.g. 690.13/690.56). 80% · utility DG manual
• Does the authority specify placard wording of its own? The county does not specify placard wording of its own — Yes/No answer is No for the AHJ. FPL DOES specify exact wording for one placard: 'Battery storage utilized in this facility.' EREC specifies no wording of its own. 78% · utility DG manual
• Does it specify letter height, colour or material? The county specifies no letter height/colour/material standard of its own for PV placards (0 relevant hits in a full-text county code search). FPL's own materials do not specify letter height/colour/material either — only the required wording and placement (meter enclosure for the battery placard; adjacent to the disconnect for the warning sign). No source found sets a specific letter height, colour, or material for either the AHJ or the two utilities serving this county. 60% · utility DG manual
• Is a site plan / facility map placard required, and what must it show? A facility/power-source identification placard is required at the service equipment under NEC Art. 705.10 (adopted statewide via the 8th-ed. FBC that the county incorporates at Sec. 14-26/14-28), showing the location of all on-site power sources (utility service, PV, and any battery) for firefighter/first-responder identification. Escambia County's own text adds nothing beyond the adopted NEC requirement — no county-specific facility-map placard rule was found. 62% · adopting ordinance
• Does the UTILITY specify placards beyond the AHJ's? Yes, materially. FPL: requires a sign at the meter identifying the disconnect switch's location and a warning sign on the disconnect itself ('both sides of the switch may be energized'), plus the battery-storage placard quoted at Q38-39 — none of which the AHJ itself specifies. EREC's own paperwork does not add placard wording beyond referring back to 'Authority Having Jurisdiction' code requirements, though EREC does require 24-hour advance phone notice before activating or testing a solar PV system and a signed Standard Interconnection Agreement plus $100,000 liability insurance proof as prerequisites to connection — administrative requirements the county does not itself impose. 82% · utility DG manual
• Where must the labels be placed? Per FPL: the manual disconnect switch (where required — see Q48) must be 'mounted separate from, but adjacent to, the FPL meter socket,' with a sign at the meter noting the disconnect's location and a warning sign on the switch itself; the battery-storage placard must be 'permanently affixed to the meter enclosure.' The county's own ordinance is silent on label placement — this is entirely utility-driven for the disconnect/battery placards, with the NEC's own Art. 690/705 labels (module-level, junction box, etc.) placed per the manufacturer/installer per NEC requirements adopted through the FBC. 80% · 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? Per FPL (the majority utility here): for Tier 1 (≤10kW AC, the typical residential system) with a UL 1741-listed inverter, no customer-installed manual disconnect switch is required at all (FPL Tier 1 Agreement Sec. 5.1). If a manual disconnect IS required (non-UL-1741-inverter systems, or Tier 2/3), it 'shall be mounted separate from, but adjacent to, the FPL meter socket' (Sec. 5.2), readily accessible to FPL and capable of being padlocked open. EREC requires an electrical service disconnect only where the interconnection needs one, subject to inspection before service is restored, without stating a specific meter-relative placement rule of its own in the documents reviewed. 85% · utility DG manual
• Must equipment be on a specific approved list? Yes, in the sense that FPL requires the inverter/generation equipment to be UL 1741 / IEEE 1547 & 1547.1 listed and tested by a nationally recognized testing laboratory before it may be interconnected (Tier 1 Agreement Sec. 3.1); EREC requires the same UL 1741/IEEE 1547 compliance. The county's own building code requires 'approved materials and equipment' generally (Sec. 14-76) but does not maintain its own separate approved-equipment list for PV — the listing requirement is the utility's (and the adopted NEC's), not a county-specific list. 70% · utility DG manual
• Is a ground mount treated as a structure? Yes, functionally, though not under a solar-specific label — a ground-mounted PV array would be reviewed under the LDC's general accessory-use/accessory-structure rules (Ch. 4, Art. 7, Sec. 4-7.3), which require compliance with 'all other LDC and Florida Building Code requirements' and a building permit before construction, exactly as for any other accessory structure. Unlike small wind energy systems, which get their own named accessory-use subsection with height/setback specifics, there is no PV-specific ground-mount subsection — it falls to the general accessory-structure setback/height rules. 68% · zoning ordinance

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 (MyGovernmentOnline, online scheduling) or Phone (IVR at 850-273-4864). The county's Inspections page: 'Inspections can be easily be scheduled online... The Interactive Voice Response system, or IVR, is also available by calling 850-273-4864 and following the prompts.' 90% · department page
• How much notice is required? Same-day is possible with sufficient morning notice: online scheduling is open 'until 6 a.m. for same day inspections,' and the phone IVR system allows same-day requests 'if called in by 4:30 a.m.' There is no multi-day advance-notice minimum stated for standard (non-same-day) bookings. 88% · department page
• Are same-day or AM/PM windows offered? Same-day inspections are explicitly offered (see Q50); the county's page does not describe AM/PM time-window selection, only that requests are sent to the inspector's field device 'in real time' once scheduled. 75% · 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, self-performed by default — the county's own inspectors (certified per F.S. Ch. 468, Sec. 14-171) perform final inspections. Delegated is also available at the applicant's option: if a registered private provider is used for plan review (F.S. 553.791), the county's own registration form requires that private-provider inspection be used for that same project too, meaning inspection can be delegated to the private provider rather than a county inspector. 80% · adopting ordinance
• If delegated, to whom? Where delegated, to a Florida-licensed 'private provider' (a duly authorized engineer, architect, or building code administrator per F.S. 553.791) registered with the county in advance — per the county's own Private Provider Registration Form, which requires the firm's name, its Qualifier, and all Duly Authorized Representatives (with FL license numbers under F.S. Chs. 481/471/486) on file before that firm may perform plan review or inspections in the county. 78% · form

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? The county's general electrical inspection sequence (Sec. 14-173(b)) is: (1) Slab/underground (only if applicable — trenching/conduit before backfill); (2) Rough-in (only if concealed wiring is run before insulation/wall coverage); (3) Final — 'made after the building is complete, all required electrical fixtures are in place and properly connected.' For a typical residential rooftop PV retrofit with no concealed new wiring, only the Final Electrical inspection would typically apply; if roof/structural attachment work is also permitted, a Building Final would also be required (Sec. 14-183). The county publishes no PV-specific inspection sequence of its own — this is the general electrical-inspection sequence applied to a PV project. (For comparison, the separate City of Pensacola AHJ explicitly names 'Electrical Final, Solar Electrical Final, and Building Final' as the three required inspections for its own solar permits — a useful data point on the pattern, but not Escambia County's own text.) 65% · adopting ordinance
• Is a rough-in or mid-roof inspection required? Not stated as a distinct requirement for PV specifically. The general rough-in inspection (Sec. 14-173(b)(2)) is only triggered 'after the roof, framing, fireblocking and bracing is in place and prior to placement of insulation' — i.e., only where new concealed wiring/framing is part of the scope. A straightforward panel-and-inverter retrofit on an existing roof, with no new concealed wiring run through the attic, would typically skip a rough-in/mid-roof inspection and go straight to final. 60% · adopting 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.

• What must be on site at inspection? Per Sec. 14-117 (Placement of permit) and Sec. 14-119 (Notice of Commencement): the permit card/approved plans must be on site, and — for any job valued at $2,500 or more — a certified/recorded copy of the Notice of Commencement, printed in bold capitalized 14-point type per Sec. 14-119, must be posted at the job site before the first inspection. Sec. 14-169 additionally requires the work to 'remain accessible and exposed for inspection purposes until approved.' 80% · adopting ordinance
• Does the inspector verify labels and listings? Not stated explicitly as a checklist item, but yes as a matter of code compliance — the final electrical inspection (Sec. 14-173(b)(3)) requires that 'all required electrical fixtures are in place and properly connected,' and the county's general 'approved materials and equipment' rule (Sec. 14-76) requires all installed equipment to be approved/listed; both utilities (FPL, EREC) separately condition interconnection on UL 1741/IEEE 1547 listed equipment. In practice this means the inspector verifying code-compliant, listed equipment as part of the standard final inspection, though no county document states 'the inspector checks labels and listings' in those words. 55% · adopting ordinance

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 Completion, not a Certificate of Occupancy, for a system added to an already-occupied dwelling: Sec. 14-205 — 'A certificate of completion is proof that a structure or system is complete and for certain types of permits is released for use and may be connected to a utility system. This certificate does not grant authority to occupy a building.' A full Certificate of Occupancy (Sec. 14-201/14-202) is reserved for new construction or a change of use/occupancy classification, which a PV retrofit on an existing house is not. 82% · adopting ordinance
• Who notifies the utility for PTO? Installer/customer, with the county's approval flowing to the utility as supporting documentation rather than the county contacting the utility on its own initiative. Two independent confirmations: (1) County ordinance Sec. 14-206 — 'No person shall make connections from a utility, source of energy, fuel or power to any building or system ... until released by the building official' — i.e., the county's own Certificate of Completion is the release the customer/installer then presents. (2) EREC's Standard Interconnection Agreement requires documentation, '[SENT TO EREC FROM LOCAL CODE OFFICIALS],' that the installation passed local inspection, and instructs the member to 'CALL EREC 24 HOURS BEFORE ACTIVATING OR TESTING' — placing the notification duty on the customer/member. FPL's Tier 1 Agreement Sec. 3.4-3.5 similarly makes the Customer responsible for providing the local inspection certification and for giving FPL 10 calendar days' notice before initial operation. 78% · utility DG manual + adopting ordinance
• How are corrections issued and cleared? Sec. 14-189: 'Work shall not be done beyond the point indicated in each successive inspection without first obtaining ... approval. The building official or designee, upon notification, shall make the requested inspections and shall either indicate the portion of the construction that is satisfactory as completed, or notify the permit holder or his or her agent wherein the same fails to comply with this code. Any portions that do not comply shall be corrected and such portion shall not be covered or concealed until authorized by the building official or designee.' Corrections are therefore issued at the point of inspection and cleared by re-inspection/re-approval of the same item. 82% · adopting ordinance