Community Solar Programs in Florida

Community solar programs allow Florida residents and businesses to access solar-generated electricity without installing panels on their own property. This page covers the structure, eligibility criteria, regulatory framework, and decision factors relevant to Florida's community solar landscape. Understanding how these programs function helps households, renters, and small businesses evaluate whether shared solar arrangements align with their energy and financial goals.

Definition and scope

Community solar — also called shared solar or solar gardens — is a model in which a centrally located solar array generates electricity that is distributed to subscribers through the existing utility grid. Subscribers receive credits on their electricity bills proportional to their share of the array's output, rather than consuming power directly from panels they own or lease.

In Florida, the legal foundation for community solar was established through Florida Statute § 366.9175, enacted in 2022, which directed the Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC) to establish a statewide community solar pilot program. The statute requires investor-owned utilities — including Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy Florida, and Tampa Electric — to offer community solar subscriptions to eligible customers.

Subscription sizes under FPSC rules are capped so that a single subscriber's share cannot exceed 150% of the subscriber's average monthly electricity consumption, preventing commercial aggregators from monopolizing capacity. The pilot program scale is also bounded: each participating utility must offer a community solar program totaling at least 150 megawatts of nameplate capacity statewide, as specified under the FPSC's implementing order.

Scope boundary: This page covers community solar programs governed by Florida statutes and administered by the FPSC within Florida's investor-owned utility territories. It does not address federal community solar programs administered under the U.S. Department of Energy or programs in municipal utility or rural cooperative territories, which operate under separate governance structures. Customers of JEA, Gainesville Regional Utilities, or Florida's rural electric cooperatives fall outside the scope of the FPSC-regulated pilot and should consult their specific utility's policies.

How it works

Community solar operates through a structured subscription model distinct from rooftop ownership. The process unfolds in the following phases:

Array development: A utility or approved third-party developer constructs and interconnects a large solar array, typically at a utility-scale site, under the Florida utility interconnection process and with permits issued under the Florida Building Code requirements for solar.
Subscription enrollment: Eligible customers sign a subscription agreement for a defined share of the array's capacity, denominated in kilowatts (kW).
Generation and metering: The array produces electricity measured at the point of interconnection. The utility tracks each subscriber's proportional share of monthly production.
Bill credit application: Credits are applied to the subscriber's monthly electricity bill. The credit rate is set by the FPSC and may differ from the standard retail rate.
Subscription adjustment or exit: Subscribers may reduce, transfer, or cancel subscriptions subject to contract terms, which the FPSC requires to include consumer protections including notice periods and portability within the same utility service territory.

This mechanism is conceptually different from traditional rooftop solar. A full overview of how solar generation and billing interact with Florida's grid is available through the conceptual overview of Florida solar energy systems.

Common scenarios

Renters and apartment residents: Tenants who cannot modify their dwelling or obtain landlord consent for rooftop panels represent the primary intended beneficiary of community solar. A renter subscribing to 2 kW of a shared array receives bill credits each month without any installation on the rental unit.

Homeowners with unsuitable rooftops: Rooftops affected by heavy shading, structural limitations, or orientation constraints — common in densely wooded neighborhoods — may not support cost-effective rooftop systems. Community solar provides access to generation without rooftop dependency. Rooftop suitability factors are explored further in solar roof integration and roofing considerations in Florida.

Low-to-moderate income (LMI) households: Florida Statute § 366.9175 requires that at least 20% of each utility's community solar program capacity be reserved for LMI customers. LMI subscribers are also entitled to protections against subscription costs that exceed bill credits.

Small commercial customers: Businesses lacking rooftop space or operating from leased facilities can subscribe proportionate to their load. Commercial solar alternatives are also addressed in commercial solar energy systems in Florida.

Contrast — community solar vs. rooftop ownership: Rooftop system owners receive the federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) of 30% under the Inflation Reduction Act (26 U.S.C. § 48E), and may also benefit from Florida's solar property tax exemption. Community solar subscribers generally do not receive the ITC for their subscription share (as they do not own the system), and the property tax exemption does not apply to subscription arrangements. The federal ITC and Florida solar systems page details ownership-based incentive eligibility.

Decision boundaries

Evaluating community solar requires weighing several structural factors:

Credit rate vs. retail rate: The FPSC-set credit rate may be lower than the full retail rate, meaning subscribers offset less per kilowatt-hour than a net-metered rooftop owner would. Net metering in Florida provides the comparative framework for rooftop credit structures.
Contract term risk: Subscriptions typically run 20 years with early termination provisions. Subscribers relocating outside the utility's service territory may face contract complications.
Capacity availability: Program capacity is finite; waitlists can form when demand exceeds the mandated 150 MW ceiling per utility.
Regulatory evolution: The FPSC retains authority to modify credit rates, program caps, and LMI set-asides through rulemaking. The regulatory context for Florida solar energy systems provides background on how FPSC oversight structures evolve.

Households and businesses evaluating broader solar options — including storage, financing, and incentive stacking — can find a consolidated starting point at the Florida Solar Authority home.

References

📜 3 regulatory citations referenced · 🔍 Monitored by ANA Regulatory Watch · View update log