Crockett County, TX — Solar Development Risk Assessment

No specific moratorium information available.

None codified.

No ordinance — by-right in unincorporated areas.

Supportive — solar framed as economic diversification for declining remote county.

Ozona county seat; 2,807 sq mi land area (very large); population –7% 2020–2023 (3,098 → ~2,881); Southwest Texas Electric Cooperative (SWTEC) territory; high solar irradiance; R-majority board.

Improving

No state siting board for solar in Texas. PUCT regulates utilities; ERCOT manages interconnection for ERCOT service territory (most of state); SPP governs Panhandle/northwest TX. County Commissioners Court governs unincorporated areas under Texas Local Government Code. Many rural TX counties have NO zoning authority — solar is essentially by-right without county approval requirement. HB 2527 (2023) requires counties with solar ordinances to provide a 'reasonable' permitting framework. No statewide preemption prevents county restrictions. ERCOT interconnection queue is severely congested — grid study delays of 2-4+ years common.

Texas has no state RPS mandate. Key incentives: Federal ITC (30% base + bonus adders for energy communities/domestic content). Property tax abatement via Chapter 312/313 successor frameworks (county-level negotiation required). ERCOT wholesale market provides strong merchant revenue stack. No state income tax benefits developer HQ decisions. USDA REAP available for rural projects.

Crockett County Solar PV Park (Community Power Group) — 300 MW; permitting stage; expected commercial operation 2027; construction commencing 2026. Blue Sky Solar LLC — 240,732 PV panels, 29 central inverters; Ch. 313 tax abatement filed for Crockett County CCSD reinvestment zone.

None documented.