New requirements under Texas Senate Bill 1036, the Residential Solar Retailer Regulatory Act, take full effect September 1, 2026, mandating that residential solar salespeople register with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation and work exclusively for registered solar retailers.
According to Houston Public Media, the registration and enforcement provisions are the final phase of legislation that initially took effect in September 2025, which included a requirement allowing customers to cancel solar contracts within five business days of signing.
The new requirements add a layer of accountability to a market that has seen a sharp rise in consumer complaints, with solar-related grievances submitted to the Texas attorney general increasing 818% between 2018 and 2023, and complaints to the licensing department rising 576% over the same period.
Common complaints have included forged signatures, misleading sales promises, undisclosed financing terms, and panels that were paid for but never installed.
The legislation was developed in part in response to advocacy from Texas Appleseed, a nonprofit that documented widespread consumer harm in the residential solar market.
“We heard story after story of people in their 80s with $100,000 in solar panel loans,” said Ann Baddour of the nonprofit Texas Appleseed. She explained that the accountability provisions “go a long way toward addressing many of the problems that we saw in the market prior to the most recent legislative session.”
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