If you are searching for Maryland HB 1104 because someone told you it requires remote solar inspections, here is the short version.
HB 1104 did not pass. Most of what it contained did.
Delegate Fraser-Hidalgo introduced HB 1104 in February 2026 as a standalone rewrite of Maryland's residential solar permitting rules. It died in committee. Its provisions were folded into HB 1532, the Utility RELIEF Act, which the Governor signed as Chapter 353, effective on enactment.
The requirements changed on the way through. If you are planning against the HB 1104 text, you are planning against the wrong document.
The introduced bill was direct about remote inspections. By August 1, 2027, every county and municipality would have had to authorize any inspection required for a project permitted by solar permitting software to be conducted remotely through recorded video or photographs.
It also capped the cost of a remote inspection at $100, required it to be completed in the same timeframe as an in person inspection, and barred agencies from requiring more than one remote inspection unless the first one failed.
MACo opposed it, arguing the mandate would undermine local flexibility, strain budgets, and compromise safety safeguards.
Chapter 353 kept the direction and dropped the method. The words "remote inspection" as a standalone mandate are gone. What replaced them is arguably harder to meet.
Solar permitting software by August 1, 2027. Counties and municipalities must implement software that automates plan review against the Maryland Building Performance Standards, the National Electrical Code including local amendments, and locally adopted building codes, produces code compliant approvals, issues permits immediately on receipt of online fee payment, and handles a majority of residential solar applications. This extends the August 1, 2025 deadline set by the Brighter Tomorrow Act of 2024.
An average five business day inspection. The operative language reads: a county or municipality shall complete a remote or in person inspection required for a project permitted by solar permitting software within an average of 5 business days after receiving a properly completed request for inspection.
Published performance data. Agencies must make annual data publicly available for the average inspection time on projects permitted by solar permitting software.
A $500 permit fee cap. Beginning August 1, 2027, for residential rooftop solar under 20 kilowatts AC. Third party payment processing may be charged separately.
Manual review inside five business days where a manual review of a software approved permit is performed.
Coverage is broad. The requirements apply to counties and municipalities that issue residential solar permits, with narrow exceptions.
HB 1104 as introduced vs what became law The remote inspection mandate was replaced by a speed mandate HB 1104, DID NOT PASS CHAPTER 353, ENACTED Remote inspection required by August 1, 2027 Remote or in person the county chooses Remote inspection capped at $100 5 business day average from request to inspection One remote inspection max unless the first one failed Annual inspection times published for the public Method specified recorded video or photographs $500 fee cap rooftop solar under 20 kW AC What this means Remote inspection is no longer mandated, but the five business day average is. For most departments, hitting that average on a rooftop solar queue without remote inspection means adding truck routes and staff. Sources: HB 1104 fiscal note, 2026 session; Chapter 353 (HB 1532), enacted 2026 What HB 1104 proposed against what Chapter 353 enacted.Read the two versions side by side and the shift is easy to miss.
HB 1104 told you how to inspect. Chapter 353 tells you how fast, and then makes your number public.
The five business day average is the real constraint. It applies from a properly completed inspection request, it is an average rather than a ceiling, and the annual publication requirement means your performance against it is visible to every solar installer and every resident in your jurisdiction.
Remote inspection is now optional in name. For most departments it is the only realistic way to hold a five day average on a rooftop solar queue without adding truck routes and headcount, and the statute explicitly contemplates it by naming remote inspection as an equal alternative to in person.
Departments that already run remote inspection programs give a sense of the operating numbers.
City of Berkeley, Building & Safety Division. Berkeley moved routine inspections to app free mobile video. Property owners get an SMS link and share their camera with no download. The division reported a 50% reduction in scheduling wait times, a 24 minute average virtual inspection, and 2x daily inspection capacity without adding staff.
"Blitzz is easy to work with and use. It is a great tool to have for inspections. A good Wifi or Internet connection and the virtual Blitzz app can be used in any part of the house for an inspection."
Keith T., Building Inspector, City of Berkeley
Read the full City of Berkeley case study.
Aoka Engineering. Aoka delivers contract inspection services to municipalities, including jurisdictions hours from the nearest inspector. Remote video inspection moved them from days of waiting to same day inspections, often within an hour, with timestamped video and annotated photos on every job.
"Contractors click a link, our certified inspector sees exactly what they see, and the project keeps moving."
Aoka Engineering Virtual Inspections Team
Read the full Aoka Engineering case study.
Note what Berkeley's number means against a five day average. Cutting scheduling wait times in half is the difference between meeting the standard and publishing a figure you would rather not publish.
Maryland solar permitting and inspection deadlines Utility RELIEF Act of 2026, Chapter 353 (HB 1532) In effect now Chapter 353 signed and effective on enactment August 1, 2027 Solar permitting software and the $500 fee cap Ongoing Average 5 business day inspections, published Applies to every county and municipality that issues residential solar permits. Maryland solar permitting and inspection deadlines under Chapter 353.Roughly 11 months of runway, and the software procurement is running in parallel with the inspection work.
The statute is technology neutral, which puts the burden of proving an inspection was legitimate on your records.
No app download. Adoption dies at the app store. Installers and homeowners should be able to join from a text message link in whatever browser their phone already has.
Both live and recorded modes. Rooftop work and low signal properties do not always cooperate with a scheduled live session. Recorded submission handles those cases.
Location verification built in. Geotagged, timestamped capture that starts at the street removes any question that the media shows the permitted address.
A retained record. Timestamped video, still capture, inspector notes, and a standardized inspection report that matches your records retention schedule.
Reporting you can publish. Chapter 353 requires annual average inspection time. Pick a platform that produces that number without a manual data pull.
Permitting system integration. Results that do not write back to Accela, Tyler, or CentralSquare become a data entry problem, which is exactly what a five day average cannot absorb. Check the vendor's integration list before the pilot, not after.
General purpose video conferencing tools clear none of these bars. They produce no structured record, no location proof, and no reportable metrics.
Blitzz Inspect is a remote video inspection platform built for this workflow. Inspectors send a link, the installer or homeowner joins from a phone browser with no app download, and the session is recorded, timestamped, and geotagged. Inspectors annotate live, capture stills, and pull high resolution images. Everything lands in a searchable record with reporting that produces the inspection time figures Chapter 353 asks you to publish.
See a remote inspection run end to end.
Agencies that start now will be holding a five business day average well before the first published report. In 20 minutes we will show you a rooftop solar inspection end to end, the record it produces, and the reporting behind it.
Prefer to look at numbers first? See Blitzz Inspect pricing.
This article summarizes HB 1104 as introduced in the 2026 session and Chapter 353 (HB 1532) as enacted. It is not legal advice. Confirm the current statutory text and consult your agency counsel before adopting a compliance plan.