Senate approves legislation Tuesday regulating solar panel sales companies

A state business regulator-backed bill proposing stricter regulation oversight of solar panel sales companies sailed through the Rhode Island Senate Tuesday with unanimous approval.

The legislation sponsored by Sen. Jake Bissaillon, a Providence Democrat, on behalf of the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation, aims to instill order in the “Wild West” of solar panel sales, which have become the subject of increasing complaints and in the case of one company, by the Rhode Island Office the Attorney General alleging deceptive sales tactics.

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“The reason why I felt so inclined to sponsor this legislation is because of the predatory sales tactics I see in my district, in Smith Hill and Elmhurst,” Bissaillon said Tuesday. “These are high-pressure sales environments particularly for seniors and at the time they are signing, they don’t fully understand it.”

Unlike most sales-based industries already licensed and regulated by DBR, the nascent solar panel sector has little oversight under existing state law when it comes to registration, sales tactics or consumer protections.

Bissaillon’s bill, alongside companion legislation in the House by Rep. Mia Ackerman, a Cumberland Democrat, would change that. The bill sets up a registration process for solar panel retailers and empowers the state’s business regulatory agency to enforce penalties against companies who fail to register or who violate standards around financial disclosures, contracts and set hours for door-to-door sales.

The proposal has drawn support from Attorney General Peter Neronha’s office, along with the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources and Rhode Island Division of Public Utilities and Carriers. Some solar panel retailers have also testified in favor of the bill as a way to distinguish reputable companies from the “bad actors” tainting the reputation and perception of the industry as a whole

Jay Gotra, CEO of Smart Green Solar, whose company is facing the lawsuit from Neronha’s office, has said that overregulation will inhibit the state’s ability to achieve its aggressive renewable energy mandates, including the 2021 Act on Climate law. 

If signed into law, the changes would take effect March 1, 2025.

The House Committee on Corporations was scheduled to vote on the bill later Tuesday night, sending it to the full floor for consideration at a date not yet determined. Ackerman in an interview Tuesday said she was optimistic for passage though she had not spoken about it specifically with House leadership.

“They know it’s one of my priority bills,” Ackerman said.