On Monday, U.S. Rep. Rob Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, introduced the first federal bill aimed at legalizing solar panels that simply plug into an outlet. The legislation would require all state public utility commissions to consider rules that would enable Americans to access this DIY clean energy tech, and would create a program to help lower-income households afford the systems.
“Families are getting squeezed by electric bills that keep going up,” Menendez said in a statement. “Plug-in solar is a simple, affordable way to cut those bills, but outdated rules and unnecessary fees are standing in the way. The Socket Full of Sunshine Act clears those barriers so more families, including renters, can start saving.”
Balcony solar, which has been attracting increasing interest around the U.S. this year, typically consists of one to four solar panels that plug into a normal 120-volt wall outlet. When the sun is shining, these tiny home power plants can produce enough energy to supply a laptop, a fridge, an air conditioner, or a few small appliances.
While that’s not a lot of electricity, a balcony or backyard setup can have a payback period of as little as 2.5 years instead of the 10-plus years typical for a more powerful rooftop array. Depending on local electricity rates, plug-in solar can save households hundreds of dollars a year on utility bills thereafter.
However, in the U.S., no single standard allowing the safe use of the technology exists. Instead, the country has a patchwork of state-level regulation.
Deep-red Utah passed the nation’s first law to legalize plug-in solar last year. This year, 10 more states followed suit — including California, Colorado, Maryland, and Virginia — and now await plug-in solar kits certified safe by a nationally recognized testing laboratory such as UL Solutions. Lawmakers in more than 20 other states introduced balcony-solar bills this year but didn’t manage to get them across the finish line.