Bills / H.B. 323
H.B. 323 Solar Panel Disposal Amendments
- Introduced
- House committee
- House vote
- Senate committee
- Senate vote
- Signed into law
What this bill does
The bill sets up a process for disposing of worn-out solar panels, with the Department of Environmental Quality running it and setting fees to pay for it. It requires studies in the near term, and recycling or landfill disposal of spent panels under rules, while illegal dumping would face civil penalties set by courts.
Plain-English summary written by AI from the sponsor’s presentation in committee and on the floor. Check the official text below.
Official description
- defines terms
- mandates disclosure language by a solar retailer regarding state requirements for the testing and disposal of a solar panel
- authorizes the Waste Management and Radiation Control Board to make rules, beginning on July 1, 2028, for the testing and disposal of solar panel waste
- creates the Solar Panel Waste Restricted Account
- imposes an assessment on renewable energy parent entities to be deposited into the Solar Panel Waste Restricted Account
- imposes a distributed generation fee on small-scale solar entities
- provides for the Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control (division) to require an owner or operator of a solar panel, beginning on July 1, 2028, to:
- complete a hazardous waste analysis on the solar panel before disposal
- dispose of hazardous solar panel waste at a solar panel waste disposal site or solar panel waste recycling facility
- allows an operator of a landfill to submit an application to register with the division as a solar panel waste disposal site
- establishes that the director of the division may enforce the solar panel waste requirements by bringing a civil action in a court
- requires the division to report annually to two legislative committees
- requires the division to complete a study on solar panel recycling in the state and report the findings and recommendations to two legislative committees
- clarifies that the energy project assessment ends on December 31, 2027
- makes technical and conforming changes
What it costs you
- State spending from tax funds goes up by $1,900 in FY2027.
- The official fiscal note on residents and businesses:
Enactment of this legislation could increase tax liability for renewable energy parent entities by $120,000 in FY 2027 and $160,000 in FY 2028 statewide. Assessments will vary based on the entity's total number of generating alternating current nameplate capacity megawatts of wind or solar electric generation facilities that are commercially operational. Enactment could also cost small-scale solar entities statewide $25,200 one-time in FY 2026 and $151,000 annually beginning in FY 2027 from paying a distributed generation fee. Finally, enactment of this legislation will require businesses who operate landfills to register with the division as a solar panel waste disposal site in order to accept hazardous solar panel waste.
From the bill's latest official fiscal note, counting the state's tax funds (General, Income Tax, Education, Uniform School, and Transportation) in the first full budget year after the session. Some bills take effect partway through that year, so later years can be larger; the note shows each year. Household count: U.S. Census Bureau. An average is a starting point, not your bill.
Your legislators on this bill
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Every vote
- 8 yes, 0 no, 4 absentHouse Public Utilities and Energy Committee: vote to change the bill · Feb 19, 2026Who voted how
- 8 yes, 0 no, 4 absentHouse Public Utilities and Energy Committee: vote to approve it · Feb 19, 2026Who voted how
- 63 yes, 2 no, 10 absentFinal House vote · Feb 25, 2026Who voted how
- 4 yes, 3 no, 1 absentSenate Business and Labor Committee: vote to approve it · Mar 2, 2026Who voted how
- 24 yes, 3 no, 2 absentFinal Senate vote · Mar 5, 2026Who voted how
Hearings and debates
- Feb 19, 2026 House Public Utilities and Energy Committee▶ WatchRead the transcript (49 turns) →
- Feb 25, 2026 House floor debate▶ WatchRead the transcript (19 turns) →
- Mar 2, 2026 Senate Business and Labor Committee▶ WatchRead the transcript (21 turns) →
- Mar 5, 2026 Senate floor debate▶ WatchRead the transcript (10 turns) →
- Mar 5, 2026 Senate floor debate▶ WatchRead the transcript (15 turns) →