Florida Supreme Court Reviews Proposal from Consumers for Smart Solar

In the latest from Florida’s solar “battle of the ballot measures”, Consumers for Smart Solar has sent its ballot initiative to the top court in the state for clearance on the proposal’s language, clarity, and word count. The summary for the ballot is required to fit within a 75-word limit and the language needs to be easily understood by the public while staying within the singular topic of solar energy equipment in Florida.

This is the second of two competing solar ballot measures to reach the state Supreme Court review, and with over a quarter of a million signatures already lined up for submission, there is little worry that the bill may not reach the 683,149 valid petition signatures they need. Not to mention, of the two initiatives in question, Consumers for Smart Solar definitely has more big-name financial support, including state energy companies Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy, Gulf Power and Tampa Electric. But Floridians for Solar Choice have already been approved by the state Supreme Court, which means it could be back to the drawing board, if the language and brevity of the initiative isn’t approved.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the initiative from Consumers for Smart Solar “would allow businesses to generate and sell up to two megawatts of solar power to customers on the same or neighboring properties. In doing so, it would largely shield the solar producers from state and local regulations.”

However, proponents of the Floridians for Solar Choice proposal believe it is still too soon to say who is truly benefiting from such a change, and with November leaving Consumers for Smart Solar just slightly ahead of the competition in signatures, it’s also too soon to say which measure will come out on top.