Annapolis, MD [January 21st, 2021] - The State of Maryland is looking for more ways to increase renewable energy capacity. One easy way to do that is to add solar to all new buildings. While similar legislation was passed in California, it doesn’t like it will happen, at least not yet, in Maryland. The encouraging part is that the bill was sponsored by a Republican Chris West. He introduced the same bill last year with bipartisan support. It did not move out of committee. MEI was happy to provide testimony“At MEI, we are always looking at ways to increase policy support for renewable in an equitable way,” says MEI Associate Gerard Neely. “Maryland is a key market of ours and we’re proud to have projects with Bowie State University, University of Maryland and most recently at the Maryland State Fairgrounds.”In a nutshell, SB 330 is a solar-ready roof mandate for 4000 sq ft+ new construction (or major reno buildings). The buildings have to receive state funds and the work needs to be performed by a public entity or through a PPP. Thinking schools would be a strong vertical. From Herald Mail Media - “SB 330 would require the State of Maryland to require that projects proposed after Dec. 31, 2021, to require that the project be designed, engineered and constructed in a manner that allows the roof to withstand the weight of solar panels. It would also require certain projects to include the installation of the maximum number of solar panels for which a project was designed and require the Maryland Green Building Council to provide certain recommendations.”