Washington County, MD Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

25 of the Washington County Zoning Ordinance classifies Solar Collection Systems, defined in Section 28A, as an accessory use permitted in every zoning district, and lays out numeric standards before a system can be built. Setbacks: any solar array must sit at least six feet from all property lines and from other structures. Height: a freestanding collection system cannot exceed 20 feet. Size: on a residential lot, a freestanding array is capped at the greater of half the footprint of the principal structure or 600 square feet, except in the A(R), EC and P districts, where it may match the full footprint of the principal structure; non-residential arrays are capped at the footprint of the principal structure.

Roof- or wall-mounted systems get their own rule: the panels cannot extend more than 12 feet above the roofline, and because a roof array adds structural load, the applicant must submit a structural certification as part of the permit application before installing it. 25 also requires every Solar Collection System to comply with all applicable building and electrical codes, and the Ordinance separately allows arrays on accessory structures and lets agriculturally assessed properties add a system for each building on the property sized to that building's need.

Beyond the physical standards, the Ordinance puts the burden of protecting sunlight access on the panel owner: the property owner must negotiate any needed solar easement with neighboring owners and record it with the Clerk of the Court, and a neighbor may lawfully obstruct a system's sunlight unless that recorded easement exists.