Apartment and condo-dwellers in California may soon be able to plug portable solar panels into an ordinary wall socket on their balconies and reduce their monthly electricity bill.
Legislation reducing obstacles to so-called “balcony solar” has passed the California Senate and is making its way through the Assembly. Some of the state’s largest utility companies, who had been the bill’s main opposition, changed their position to “neutral” in June.
“It’s basically a plug-in and play solution that almost anyone, renters or homeowners alike, can implement,” said Michael Chiacos, senior policy adviser for the Santa Barbara-based Community Environmental Council.
“And then, they can enjoy all the benefits of solar, including lower electricity bills and reduced greenhouse emissions.”
Advocates also note that portable solar already is widely and successfully used in Europe and Australia. Germany leads the pack, with 1.4 million registered units, and Europeans can pick up the smallest unit at IKEA for $342 and the largest for $1,130.
Also called plug-in, portable and garden solar, these do-it-yourself systems include panels that can hang off a balcony or be placed in any sunny spot and plugged into a standard wall outlet. Advocates say they are easy to install and save money for people who can’t take advantage of the highly popular rooftop solar option.
Rare Bipartisan Support
State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, introduced SB 868 in March. The bill would clear the path for residents who want to install balcony solar by allowing them to operate independently from big utility companies. They would also be exempt from local permitting.
California is one of 20 states that has passed or is considering approval of balcony solar. In March 2025, Utah became the first state to pass a law explicitly allowing residents to plug in these devices. Seven other states have followed.
If approved, California would be the ninth.
SB 868 passed the Senate in a rare 35-1 bipartisan vote and moved to the Assembly’s Utilities and Energy Committee in early June. That committee amended the measure over safety concerns, and in an 18-0 vote last week, advanced it to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
If the committee approves it, the next step would be final votes in both houses in mid-August, then on to the Governor for signature.
“We’re cautiously optimistic,” said Erik Mebust, Wiener’s communication director. “The costs are not so significant, and we would hope the governor would sign something as important as this.”
The bill has garnered support from a coalition of environmental and clean-energy groups and several cities. The utility companies, including Southern California Edison, originally opposed the bill, along with the state’s electricians’ union. But the utility companies dropped their objections after the bill was amended in the Assembly.
Throughout debate, advocates cited rising energy costs and alarming increases in climate-altering pollution as rationales for the bill’s passage. Average rates for Southern California Edison residential customers have increased 83% in the past 10 years and by roughly 25% from 2022 to 2025.
And because the federal government under President Donald Trump has eliminated subsidies for solar projects, Mebust said it’s important for states to take action on their own.
“We’ve come into some roadblocks under the Trump Administration,” he said. “But if you can’t jump over the wall, you might as well start picking at it. This technology allows a lot of people to make real shifts to lower their energy bills.”
Technology Made Easy
When homeowners install rooftop solar, they are required to complete a complex “interconnectivity” process with their utility companies. This process allows customers to both sell their excess electricity to the utility company and pull from the grid when their panels are not producing enough energy to power their homes.
Under SB 868, balcony solar owners would be exempt from this requirement. Their systems would function entirely within their unit, feeding the electricity produced by the panels into the home’s existing circuitry.
“That electricity is then used by appliances on the same circuit or elsewhere in the home, reducing the amount of power drawn from the electric distribution grid,” according to the State Legislative analysis.
A typical system comprises up to four panels, a “solar inverter” that converts the panels’ solar energy into household current—and a plug-in cable.
SB 868 would limit total capacity to 1200 watts per dwelling, which could power, for example, an average-size refrigerator or a variety of smaller appliances.
The most common objection to widespread adoption is the risk that solar-generated electricity could overload the building’s existing wiring, potentially causing fires or electric shocks.
To address that risk, the amended bill sets safety standards for the kits. It also requires kits sold in California to meet requirements set by Underwriters Laboratories, an independent safety- science company that verifies products have been rigorously tested and meet state and federal standards.
So far, in the United States, very few balcony solar kits have been tested and meet UL standards.
That is likely to change, however, if this legislation is approved.
“It’s significant when a Republican-led state, like Utah, adopts this kind of technology,” Mebust said. “But the size of California’s market really tips the scales in terms of the supply side.
“So any state can and should make it easier to adopt portable solar, but if you want to move the market, California has to lead.”
