Rural Solar Rights

Utility-scale solar projects on private land – the fastest-growing form of energy development in the United States today – generate low-cost, carbon-free electricity and can invigorate rural economies. However, they are also attracting unprecedented local opposition as municipal governments across the country adopt ordinances prohibiting or severely restricting solar farm development within their jurisdictions. Fortunately, state legislatures have multiple means of preventing municipal governments from unreasonably restricting solar energy. The paper discusses multiple paths for state preemption to strengthen rural landowners’ rights to develop utility-scale projects.