(TRENTON) – To make solar installation easier on new warehouse projects, Assembly Democrats James Kennedy (D-Middlesex, Somerset, Union), Sterley Stanley (D-Middlesex) and Clinton Calabrese (D-Bergen, Passaic) sponsor legislation that would require any newly constructed warehouse for which an application for a construction permit has not been declared complete by July 1, 2022 to be a solar-ready building. The measure was passed by the Assembly on Thursday 46-24-1 and the Senate 25-13.
In the United States, lighting and space heating account for approximately 76 percent of total energy use in a warehouse. Adding new and solar efficient systems to these buildings would save energy and be very cost effective.
The bill (A-3352) would require the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation with the Department of Environmental Protection, to adopt rules and regulations establishing standards for the design and construction of solar-ready buildings. A solar-ready building is a building that would include a section of the roof to be designated for future installment of solar systems.
Upon Assembly approval of the measure, Assembly members Kennedy, Stanley and Calabrese issued the following joint statement:
“We want to encourage building owners to begin a transition toward using solar energy for their warehouses. New Jersey is rapidly moving toward solar energy and we need to begin preparing our buildings for the future. This bill would prepare warehouse rooftops for the potential installment of solar panels and property owners will be able to positively impact their energy use.”