Title: Solar Electrical Generating Facilities

Summary: Provides that solar facilities are permitted uses in local government comprehensive plan agricultural land use categories & certain agricultural zoning districts; requires solar facilities to comply with specified criteria; authorizes counties to adopt certain ordinances; increases capacity threshold of solar facilities exempt from certification under Florida Electrical Power Plant Siting Act.

Full Text:
An act relating to solar electrical generating facilities; creating s. 163.3205, F.S.; providing legislative intent; providing a definition; providing that solar facilities are a permitted use in local government comprehensive plan agricultural land use categories and certain agricultural zoning districts; requiring solar facilities to comply with specified criteria; authorizing counties to adopt certain ordinances; specifying requirements for such ordinances; amending s. 403.503, F.S.; revising a definition; amending s. 403.506, F.S.; increasing the capacity threshold of solar electrical generating facilities exempt from certification under the Florida Electrical Power Plant Siting Act; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Section 163.3205, Florida Statutes, is created to read: 163.3205 Solar facility approval process.-(1) It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage renewable solar electrical generation throughout the state. It is essential that solar facilities and associated electric HB 2021 infrastructure be constructed and maintained in various locations throughout the state in or der to ensure renewable energy production which is critical to the state's energy and economic future. (2) As used in this section, the term "solar facility" means a production facility for electric power that: (a) Uses photovoltaic modules to convert solar energy to electricity which is delivered to a transmission system and consumed primarily offsite. (b) Consists principally of photovoltaic modules, a mounting or racking system, power inverters, transformers, collection systems, and associated comp onents. (c) May also include accessory administration or maintenance buildings, electric transmission lines, substations, energy storage equipment, and related accessory uses and structures. (3) A solar facility shall be a permitted use in all agricult ural land use categories in a local government comprehensive plan and all agricultural zoning districts within an unincorporated area, and must comply with the setback and landscaped buffer area criteria for other similar uses in the agricultural district. (4) A county may adopt an ordinance specifying buffer and landscaping requirements for solar facilities. Such requirements may not exceed the requirements for similar uses involving the HB 2021 construction of other facilities that are permitted uses in agricultural land use categories and zoning districts. Section 2. Subsection (14) of section 403.503, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 403.503 Definitions relating to Florida Electrical Power Plant Siting Act.-As used in this act: (14) "Electrical po wer plant" means, for the purpose of certification, any steam or solar electrical generating facility using any process or fuel, including nuclear materials, except that this term does not include any steam or solar electrical generating facility of less than megawatts in capacity or solar electrical generating facility of less than megawatts in capacity unless the applicant for such a facility elects to apply for certification under this act. This term also includes the site; all associated faciliti es that will be owned by the applicant that are physically connected to the site; all associated facilities that are indirectly connected to the site by other proposed associated facilities that will be owned by the applicant; and associated transmission lines that will be owned by the applicant which connect the electrical power plant to an existing transmission network or rights-of-way to which the applicant intends to connect. At the applicant's option, this term may include any offsite associated facili ties that will not be owned by the applicant; offsite associated facilities that are owned by the applicant but that are not HB 2021 directly connected to the site; any proposed terminal or intermediate substations or substation expansions connected to the associa ted transmission line; or new transmission lines, upgrades, or improvements of an existing transmission line on any portion of the applicant's electrical transmission system necessary to support the generation injected into the system from the proposed ele ctrical power plant. Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 403.506, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 403.506 Applicability, thresholds, and certification.-(1) The provisions of This act applies shall apply to any electrical power plant as defined in s. 403.503 herein, except that the provisions of this act does shall not apply to a steam electrical generating facility of less than megawatts in gross capacity or a solar electrical generating facility of less than any electrical power plant of less than megawatts in gross capacity, including its associated facilities, unless the applicant for such a facility has elected to apply for certification of such electrical power plant under this act. The provisions of This act does shall not apply to capacity expansions of megawatts or less, in the aggregate, of an existing exothermic reaction cogeneration electrical generating facility that was exempt from this act when it was originally built; however, this exem ption does shall not apply if the unit uses oil or natural gas for purposes other than unit startup. No HB 2021 Construction of any new electrical power plant or expansion in steam generating capacity as measured by an increase in the maximum electrical generator rating of any existing electrical power plant may not be undertaken after October 1, 1973, without first obtaining certification pursuant to this act in the manner as herein provided,except that this act does shall not apply to any such electrical power plant which is presently operating or under construction or which has, upon the effective date of chapter-33, Laws of Florida, applied for a permit or certification under requirements in force before prior to the effective date of this such act. Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.