Dane County, WI

As the very first county in the U.S. to earn SolSmart Platinum designation, Dane County, Wisconsin undertook innovative actions to support solar energy for all residents within its jurisdiction. That included work to connect local governments within the county with solar resources (including the SolSmart program), providing solar financing options for residents, supported the installation of solar on multifamily housing within the community, worked with a regional organization on solar incentives and resources, installed solar on county-owned facilities, and much more.

• Post online resources about solar installers and/or solar quote platforms for solar PV, solar PV financing options and incentives, consumer protection, as well as summaries of relevant state-level policies
• Post an online solar map for the county
• Engaged the community through recurring public meetings, focus groups, or other similar events around climate, energy, or sustainability plans and/or goals
• Demonstrated county level support for local solar projects through speeches, press releases, opinion articles, etc.
• Discussed countywide goals for solar PV, net metering, community solar, and/or interconnection processes with the local utility and explored areas for future collaboration
• Conducted feasibility analysis for solar PV on public facilities and/or publicly controlled land
• Installed solar PV for direct use by the county or county-run program or service
• Installed solar PV integrated with other technologies, such as electric vehicle charging, on local government facilities and/or organization-controlled land
• Aggregated and publicized solar PV and storage-related details on utility interconnection processes, utility-specific resources and regulations, and state/regional regulations and incentives for member-communities
• Provided technical or financial support for the installation of solar PV on affordable housing, multifamily housing, community-based organizations, and/or resilience hubs
• Coordinated with regional organizations and/or local governments to engage utilities on advancing solar policies such as utility procurement of solar PV, green tariffs, and/or interconnection process improvements
• Procured solar energy for direct use by the county or a county-run program or service through an offsite physical PPA, virtual PPA, green tariff, or similar structure
• Demonstrated activity in state regulatory and/or legislative proceedings regarding solar PV
• Supported a community-wide group purchase program (e.g., Solarize)
• Provided a PACE financing program that includes solar PV as an eligible technology
• Reviewed existing county planning documents and identify new opportunities (not already included) to integrate solar PV and solar PV integrated with other technologies, such as battery storage or electric vehicle charging
• Included specific solar PV goals, metrics, and strategies in the most current version of relevant county plans (e.g., energy plan, climate plan, comprehensive plan).
• Posted a solar landing page on the county website w/ information that may include the county’s solar goals, educational materials and tools that promote solar, and resources for solar development
• Hosted countywide training for planning and zoning staff on best practices in planning and zoning for solar PV
• Engaged new communities in your county to participate in SolSmart & submit a Solar Statement.
• Developed and/or publicize a model solar zoning ordinance template that can be refined and adopted by member communities
• Hosted countywide training on best practices for permitting & inspecting solar PV and/or solar and storage systems.
• Collected & posted subdivision &/or county specific energy targets for solar PV (e.g., # of installations, MW capacity, kWhs generated &/or procured) & progress against stated targets