SACRAMENTO – Legislation was approved in an Assembly committee Monday to exempt victims of recent wildfires from a law requiring all new homes to have solar panels beginning in 2020.

Assemblyman Jim Patterson introduced AB 1078 in order to include victims of numerous devastating 2020 wildfires in an exemption granted to previous wildfire victims. Without this bill, every person seeking to rebuild would be required to put solar panels on their home.

“Thousands of homes were lost in 2020 wildfires. Many of these victims already do not have enough insurance money to cover the cost of rebuilding as it is,” said Assemblyman Patterson said. “AB 1078 will help ease the burden of rebuilding after everything they had was destroyed.”

This bill would apply to victims of some of the largest fires in state history including the August Complex, SCU Lightning Complex, LNU Lightning Complex as well as the Glass, Zogg, and Creek fires

AB 1078 moves to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.