DENVER - Gov. Bill Ritter on Tuesday signed Senate Bill 117 putting a cap on what city and county governments can charge for permit fees to install solar energy systems in homes and businesses.

The new law has a cap of $300 for residential and $1,000 for nonresidential permits.

The bill was cowritten by state Sen. Shawn Mitchell, R-Broomfield, over concerns about the disparity among permit fees charged by city and county governments throughout Colorado. With fees as low as $59 in the city of Denver to $1,344 right next door in Aurora - for the exact same service - many local solar installers felt price difference was not only unfair but also acted as a deterrent to many residents who would otherwise opt to go solar.

Blake Jones, president, co-owner and co-founder of Boulder-based Namaste Solar Electric Inc., testified in favor of Mitchell's bill before a Senate committee.

"Until two years ago most permitting offices across the state were completely unfamiliar with solar permits," he said. "But when Amendment 37 passed and started creating incentives it set off a boom in the market, and permit offices started getting flooded with applications for solar installation permits."

Due to the lack of standardization in the process, some jurisdictions - particularly
in smaller areas where there may not be as many applications - charged up to 10 times more for the exact same permit services.