Costs and benefits of practitioner certification or licensure for the solar industry

This paper presents a summary of the costs and benefits of different regulatory options available to the solar industry, including the prevalent status quo of no regulation, or licensure, certification, or state adoption of nationally-developed standards in the future. The evidence leads to the conclusion that voluntary national certification for practitioners represents the most beneficial option for the solar industry. Of the various regulatory options, only certification maintains freedom of choice for both consumers and practitioners and has the potential to provide the same quality-of-installation benefits as state-by-state licensure without imposing the restrictions and higher costs inherent in mandatory licensure. Certification provides consumers with a means by which to judge the skills and qualifications of solar practitioners, giving consumers increased confidence in the solar industry and rewarding practitioners for meeting high standards of training and practice.