In two unanimous votes on June 30, the New Jersey state legislature unanimously passed the Garden State Balcony Solar Act (S2368/A4836), a bill that allows New Jerseyites to install and use portable solar generation devices of up to 1,200 watts without the need to apply for an installation permit or obtain their utility’s approval.
With the passage of the bill, New Jersey becomes the tenth state in the nation to enact a plug-in solar law, following in the footsteps of Utah, which passed the nation’s first such law in 2025, and eight other states (seven of them on the east coast), which took action earlier this year.
News of the bill’s passage was met with celebration from supporters. A statement from Environment New Jersey state director Doug O’Malley read “New Jersey has been a national leader on solar for more than 20 years – this is a big victory for solar. As solar has spread across the state, there are still hundreds of thousands of residents who don’t have a way to go solar. Plug-in solar is a simple concept – solar small enough to plug in but big enough to provide real environmental and bill benefits.”
The bill also enjoys broad-based public support. In April, a Fairleigh Dickinson University poll of 805 registered New Jersey voters found that between 74% and 82% of these voters supported the bill, with slight differences based on age group.
Provisions of the bill
Like other plug-in solar bills in the recent past, the Garden State Balcony Solar Act includes a requirement that plug-in solar devices comply with National Electrical Code (NEC) standards and are listed or certified by Underwriter’s Laboratories (UL) to meet the standards of the UL 3700 Outline of Investigation (or similar standards by an equivalent testing laboratory). However, the law contains an exemption to this requirement for devices with 400 watts or less of power output.
Also like other states, the New Jersey bill exempts portable solar devices from a requirement to file interconnection agreements with or obtain approval from the user’s utility company, but also exempts the utility from liability for property damage, bodily injury, overvoltage, or power quality issues caused by a customer’s use of these devices.
New Jersey legislators also included in the bill provisions related to a tenant’s use of plug-in solar, disallowing landlords, HOAs, and condominium associations from prohibiting use of the devices.
However, the law does allow these groups to place “reasonable restrictions concerning the size, placement, or manner of placement” of a device “on the exterior of a unit owner’s or tenant’s premises,” and requires users to provide written notice and safety documentation for their device to the landlord or HOA at least 14 days before installing the device.
The act is set to take effect six months after Governor Miklie Sherrill signs the bill. While Sherrill has not publicly commented on the legislation, her administration’s platform is aligned with the bill’s consumer-focused goals.
Earlier this year, Sherrill issued executive orders declaring a state of emergency over rising utility costs, directed the Board of Public Utilities to freeze residential electricity supply rate increases and ordered the agency to quickly expand solar and battery storage initiatives.
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