Sunprint
The short version
- Selling power back: no law makes your utility or retail provider pay full price for it. Only public schools get mandatory net metering.
- Connecting: the utility that runs the wires must let you connect if your system meets its technical rules and carries a five-year warranty.
- Buying: since September 1, 2025 you can cancel a home solar purchase or lease within five business days of signing. Since September 1, 2026 sellers must be registered with the state.
- HOAs: an HOA can't ban solar outright, but it can set placement and approval rules.
- Taxes: the value solar adds to your home is exempt from property tax. There's no state rebate.
No net metering law for homes
The only Texas statute that requires net metering is Utilities Code 39.914, and it covers public school districts. For homes, section 39.916 says an electric utility or retail electric provider "may" contract to buy your surplus power. Nothing requires it to.
Where you can shop for electricity, the law sends your surplus to the retail provider that serves you, "at a value agreed to" between the two of you. It gives two examples: a price tied to the wholesale clearing price at the time you export, or a bill credit that carries over from month to month. City-owned utilities and electric co-ops set their own terms. The Public Utility Commission's consumer advice is blunt: the buyback rate "is usually lower than the retail price that you pay."
That is why two Texas homes with the same panels can save very different amounts. Our Texas buyback guide walks through the plan types and what each utility pays.
Your right to connect to the grid
Section 39.916 gives you a right to interconnect a renewable system of up to 2,000 kilowatts installed on your side of the meter. The wires utility, or the electric utility outside the shopping areas, must allow it if two conditions are met:
- A five-year warranty on the system "against breakdown or undue degradation."
- A size that fits your service. Its rated capacity can't exceed the utility's service capacity to your home.
You or your installer apply to the utility, following the commission's interconnection rules. The law also says the utility or your retail provider can't make you buy extra liability insurance just because you have solar, as long as the system meets the technical standards. And the utility has to make the right meter available; if it charges for it, you pay only the difference in cost.
The law calls a customer the system's "owner" even when a solar company owns the panels, so leased systems get the same right to connect.
Why system size matters legally
One clause matters when an installer proposes a big system. Under section 39.916(k), you, and any company that owns the panels, are not treated as an electric utility, a power generation company or a retail electric provider, and don't have to register with or be certified by the commission, if the system's estimated yearly output is no more than your home's estimated yearly use when it's installed.
Sizing a system to cover up to 100% of your yearly use keeps you inside that safe harbor. Since surplus power earns less than the retail price in most of Texas, it's also usually where the savings are best. Our calculator sizes systems to 75% to 95% of yearly use for that reason.
Rules for anyone selling you solar
Senate Bill 1036, the Residential Solar Retailer Regulatory Act, became Occupations Code chapter 1806. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation enforces it. It covers sales and leases of home solar systems, with a few exceptions: systems under 1 kilowatt, portable or single-appliance systems, commercial property, apartment buildings of more than four units or stories, and solar sold as part of a newly built home.
Sellers must give you their name and state registration number when you ask, and both must be in the contract.
What the law requires of a seller:
- Registration. Since September 1, 2026, salespeople and the companies they sell for must be registered with TDLR. Licensed electrical contractors selling their own installations are exempt from registering but must follow the contract and cancellation rules.
- A licensed installer, named. If the deal includes installation, the contract must say a licensed electrical contractor will do it and give that contractor's name and license number, or a list to choose from.
- Permits and approval. The contract must say the seller or contractor will get the permits and the utility's approval to connect.
- Loans tied to the sale. If the seller arranged or referred the loan, the contract must require that lender to cancel the loan if you cancel the purchase.
- No false claims. A seller can't make false or misleading statements, can't claim or hint at a link to a utility or government agency, and can't ignore a "no soliciting" sign unless someone in the home invites them in.
TDLR began accepting registrations in 2026 and said it would hold off enforcing two of its new rules, on contract disclosures and on educational materials, until November 1, 2026. Our guide to checking a Texas solar company shows how to look up a registration and what the contract must list.
Canceling a solar contract
Section 1806.156 lets you cancel a home solar purchase or lease "without penalty or further obligation" by giving written notice on or before the fifth business day after you sign. Business days leave out Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, so signing on a Thursday gives you until the following Thursday.
The contract must print the last day to cancel and a mailing or email address for the notice. If it leaves the address out, you can cancel by any reasonable written method. Keep a copy of what you send and when. Our guide to canceling a Texas solar contract counts the deadline for you and has a sample notice.
Penalties back this up. A court can impose civil penalties of up to $2,500 per violation and $50,000 in total, rising to $10,000 and $100,000 when someone over 65 was harmed. After a hearing, TDLR can also order a contract canceled and your money refunded.
HOAs
Property Code 202.010 voids HOA rules that ban or restrict solar, with a list of exceptions: the HOA can require approval first, keep panels off common property, require roof panels to stay below the roofline and follow its slope, and point you to a preferred spot unless another spot would produce over 10% more. The Texas HOA solar guide covers each exception.
Property tax
Tax Code 11.27 exempts the appraised value a solar system adds to your property. You claim it once with Form 50-123 at your county appraisal district. See the property tax exemption guide for deadlines and what to attach.
City permits
Two 2025 laws, both in effect since September 1, 2025, changed city permitting for home solar and batteries. Senate Bill 1202 lets a licensed master electrician or an electrical inspector review the plans and do the inspections for a home backup power installation instead of the city, which then has three business days to issue the permit. Senate Bill 1252 bars cities from regulating the installation or inspection of a residential energy backup system that supplies no more than 50 kW or stores no more than 100 kWh; city-owned utilities keep their own rules. Our Texas solar permits guide shows how Dallas, Houston and Austin handle it.
PACE
Texas has a PACE law, Local Government Code chapter 399, but it doesn't reach single-family homes. It defines eligible property as commercial or industrial property or "residential real property with five or more dwelling units." Anyone offering PACE financing for a house in Texas is offering something the statute doesn't cover.
How Texas solar law got here
House Bill 3693 adds Utilities Code 39.916: wires utilities must let customers connect renewable systems up to 2,000 kW, and retail providers may buy the surplus.
House Bill 362 adds Property Code 202.010, the limits on what a property owners' association can forbid.
Senate Bill 63 adds Tax Code 11.27(a-1), so the owner of a device is exempt even if it sits on someone else's property.
House Bill 431 says the HOA rule's "solar energy device" includes a solar roof tile, a change the bill calls a clarification.
Senate Bill 1036's contract terms and right to cancel take effect for home solar sales and leases.
Registration with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation and the law's enforcement chapter take effect.
TDLR's date to start enforcing its own rules on contract disclosures and educational materials.
Where to complain
- A seller or contract: the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which enforces the solar seller law and takes complaints on its website.
- Your utility or retail electricity plan: the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
- An HOA decision: start with a written request to the HOA that cites Property Code 202.010; disputes over deed restrictions go to court, so a real estate attorney is the next step.
Your estimate in three steps
- Enter your billYour ZIP code, your utility and last month's bill.
- See your estimateA yearly savings range based on your utility's rates and the sun where you live.
- Choose what's nextAsk for a quote call if you want real pricing, or just keep the number.
See what solar could save you
It takes about a minute. You don't need a site visit, a commitment or a sales call to see your number.
Common questions
Does Texas have a net metering law?
Not for homes. The only Texas law that requires net metering covers public school districts. For homes, utilities and retail electric providers may buy your surplus power, and in areas where you shop for electricity the price is whatever you and your provider agree to.
Can I cancel a solar contract in Texas?
Yes. Since September 1, 2025, Occupations Code 1806.156 lets you cancel a home solar purchase or lease without penalty by written notice on or before the fifth business day after you sign. The contract must show the last day and where to send the notice.
Do solar salespeople need a license in Texas?
Since September 1, 2026, home solar salespeople and the companies they sell for must be registered with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. Licensed electrical contractors selling their own installations are exempt from registering but still follow the contract and cancellation rules.
Can my HOA stop me from installing solar in Texas?
Not outright. Property Code 202.010 voids HOA rules that ban or restrict solar, but an HOA can still require approval, keep panels off common areas and below the roofline, and set a preferred spot unless another spot would produce more than 10% more power.
Is there a Texas solar rebate or tax credit?
There is no state rebate or state tax credit. Texas exempts the value solar adds to your home from property tax. Some utilities, such as Austin Energy, run their own rebates.
Can I get PACE financing for solar on my house in Texas?
No. The Texas PACE law, Local Government Code chapter 399, covers commercial and industrial property and residential property with five or more dwelling units, not single-family homes.
Related guides
- Texas solar buyback plans and net metering
- Texas HOA solar rules
- Texas solar property tax exemption
- How to check a solar company in Texas
- Is solar worth it in Texas?
This page summarizes Texas law in plain English and is not legal advice. Sources: Utilities Code 39.914 and 39.916 · Occupations Code chapter 1806 · SB 1036 effective dates · TDLR: Residential Solar Retailers · Property Code 202.010 · HB 431 (2025) · SB 1202 (2025) · SB 1252 (2025) · Tax Code 11.27 · Local Government Code 399.002 · PUCT: Thinking about solar panels for your home?. Reviewed October 2026.
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