Texans want its lawmakers to stop messing with its solar growth

Photo: 5B

The majority of Texans think there’s too much bureaucracy slowing down new solar projects, and they want lawmakers to step out of the way.

Texas is near the top of the solar game – it installed the most solar of any state through the first half of 2024. But policies that pile on red tape are making that growth more difficult than it has to be. Texans overwhelmingly believe their state should make it easier, not harder, to build solar.

According to new polling by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), Global Strategy Group (GSG), and North Star Opinion Research, 89% of Texans – including 83% of Trump voters – think farmers and property owners should have the right to lease their land for solar projects.

A lot of Texans also aren’t fans of adding fees and regulations that make solar more difficult. More than 80% of respondents said they want a level playing field for energy, letting solar compete with oil and gas. Texas’ solar industry is a huge part of the state’s energy future, bringing $13.4 billion into the economy in 2023 alone. And 76% of Texans agree that solar is good for the economy.

Abigail Ross Hopper, SEIA’s president and CEO, summed it up: “Texas officials who hinder solar development are out of step with what voters want: more solar.”

The poll also highlighted that most Texans see the electric grid as outdated and in need of modernizing, with 90% of voters, including 85% of Republican voters, in agreement. With 73% believing that solar and battery storage can make the grid more resilient, it’s clear they see solar as part of the solution.

Texas’s success with solar energy could be jeopardized by policymakers who insist on favoring fossil fuels. Texans across the political spectrum see the benefits of solar energy, with 73% wanting their electric utility to generate more electricity from solar power. That’s more support than any other energy source, even natural gas (67%) – and almost 80% back the Biden administration’s federal clean energy incentives, matching national trends.