Washington County, MD — Solar Development Risk Assessment

No Moratorium

Washington County: developing standards (2024-2025). Emerging typical: ≥50–100 ft from property lines; ≥200 ft from non-participating dwellings. STATE STANDARD (HB1036/SB931, eff. July 1 2025) for ≥1 MW: ≤100 ft from property lines; ≤150 ft from residential dwelling. Antietam National Battlefield buffer zone: National Park Service and MD SHPO coordination required.

Washington County developing CUP standards. ≥2 MW: MD PSC CPCN. Historic district considerations near Antietam.

Moderate — agricultural county; Hagerstown economic development interest; some solar activity

Hagerstown area; agricultural valley; growing solar interest; county developing regulatory framework; Potomac Edison territory; moderate solar activity

Stable

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).

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.

Big Spring Solar LLC | 3.5 MW | Washington County | CPCN granted 2017 — PSC Case No. 9402 | operational

Board of County Commissioners of Washington County v. Perennial Solar LLC | Maryland courts 2019 — landmark ruling establishing state PSC preemption over county authority for solar projects ≥2 MW (MACo Apr 30 2025). Washington County challenged PSC granting CPCN. Court ruled county governments preempted. Between 2019-2024 counties challenged ~100 projects — PSC rarely sided against developers.