SolarRisk Tracker / Explore / MD / Montgomery

Montgomery County, MD — Solar Development Risk Assessment

Local solar ordinance barriers, board sentiment, and utility policies that affect development timelines and risk.

39.6
Risk Grade
Good
Most populous MD county; dense DC suburb; Agricultural Reserve Program protects ~100,000 acres from utility-scale solar; limited available land; solar-friendly policy environment
Assessment Snapshot
Population
1,062,061
State Rank
#5
Compliance
50%
Trajectory
38

Moratorium Status

✓ No Active Moratorium
No Moratorium

Ordinance & Regulations

Setback Requirements
AR zone: screening required within 200 ft of neighboring house. Panels may encroach max 3 ft into side setbacks (<25 ft side street setback). Panels may encroach max 9 ft into front/rear setbacks (≥25 ft side street setback). Non-AR zones: setbacks follow underlying zoning district standards.
Zoning Mechanism
Zoning mechanism: Conditional Use via OZAH (Office of Zoning and Administrative Hearings) for AR zone projects >200% on-site. Planning Commission review ("mandatory referral" §20-301). Limited use in non-AR zones — meets standards without hearing. MD PSC CPCN required for ≥2 MW; triggers state preemption of local zoning.
Acreage Caps
AR zone: 1,800-acre aggregate cap across all approved solar projects (ZTA 20-01). Individual project: <2 MW AC in AR zone. >2 MW AC must go through MD PSC CPCN process (state preemption).
Density Caps
AR zone: 1,800-acre total countywide cap. ~93,000 acres of AR land total; effectively limits solar to ~1.9% of AR. As of 2024, very few projects approved under ZTA 20-01 due to Class I/II soil restriction.
Spacing Rules
None codified
Size Restrictions
None codified.

Board Sentiment & Political Risk

Sentiment Analysis
Very solar-friendly politically; Agricultural Reserve restrictions dominate utility-scale landscape; rooftop/community solar most viable
Basis for Assessment
Most populous MD county; dense DC suburb; Agricultural Reserve Program protects ~100,000 acres from utility-scale solar; limited available land; solar-friendly policy environment
Political Risk Factors
Improving
Board Members
County Executive: Marc Elrich | D | Nov 2026. County Council (11 members; all D): Evan Glass, Gabe Albornoz, Will Jawando, Laurie-Anne Sayles (at-large); Andrew Friedson (D1), Marilyn Balcombe (D2), Sidney Katz (D3), Kate Stewart (D4), Kristin Mink (D5), Natali Fani-González (D6), Dawn Luedtke (D7) | Nov 2026

Grid, Utilities & State Context

Grid Operator
PJM / Pepco (Exelon) transmission zone
Utilities
Pepco (Exelon), Potomac Edison (FirstEnergy) (western corner)
State Permitting Process
Local county zoning permit: conditional use or special exception at county level; no uniform statewide solar permitting standard. PPRP (Power Plant Research Program, MD DNR): environmental review for generating facilities ≥70 MW; PSC CPCN required for projects ≥70 MW. Projects <70 MW: county-level permitting only. No statewide preemption of local solar ordinances. Net metering: systems up to 2 MW (residential up to 2× annual load). All MD in PJM territory. Maryland has the largest solar carve-out in the U.S. at 14.5% by 2028 (MD Code, PUC §7-703).
State Incentives
Maryland Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS): 50% by 2030; solar carve-out 14.5% by 2028 — drives strong SREC demand. Maryland SREC market: PSC-administered; ~$50-80/SREC 2023-2024 for Tier 1 Maryland SRECs. Maryland Solar Access Program (Brighter Tomorrow Act 2024): $750/kW up to $7,500 for income-qualifying residential customers. Maryland Community Solar: community solar program active statewide. Maryland PSC: approval required for utility-owned solar; IPP projects via county/local process. Utility: BGE (Eversource) serves Baltimore metro; Pepco serves Montgomery/PG County; Delmarva Power serves Eastern Shore; SMECO serves Southern MD; Potomac Edison (FirstEnergy) serves western MD.

Development Activity

Active/Completed Projects
Chaberton Solar Victoria LLC | 4.25 MW | Montgomery County | Application WITHDRAWN August 13 2025 — PSC Case No. 9770 Chaberton Solar Ramiere LLC | 3 MW | Montgomery County | Proposed order appealed December 22 2025 — PSC Case No. 9733 Chaberton Solar Sugarloaf I LLC | 4 MW | Montgomery County | Appeal of proposed order noted December 15 2025 — PSC Case No. 9726
Denied/Withdrawn Projects
Chaberton Solar Victoria (4.25 MW) — withdrawn Aug 13 2025. Chaberton Solar Ramiere (3 MW) and Sugarloaf I (4 MW) — both under appeal Dec 2025.

Explore the Full Tracker

View risk assessments for all 3,100+ US counties, compare states, and download detailed ordinance data for your solar development pipeline.

Launch SolarRisk Tracker

Last verified: 2026-03-24 | SolarRisk Tracker | Data sources: Government records, utility filings, public meeting minutes