Texas solar grew fast enough to attract both great companies and genuinely bad actors — and the complaint data forced the Legislature's hand. Reported figures tell the story: solar-related complaints to the Texas Attorney General jumped from 154 in 2020 to 696 in 2024, with Better Business Bureau complaints climbing similarly. The response is Senate Bill 1036 (2025), the Residential Solar Retailer Regulatory Act — a new Chapter 1806 of the Occupations Code that puts residential solar sales under TDLR's authority for the first time. Whether you're a homeowner or an installer, here's what it actually does.
What the Act covers
The law regulates residential solar retail transactions — selling or leasing residential solar energy systems — and reaches two populations: solar retailers (the companies) and solar salespersons (the individuals), including the dealer/sales organizations that originate deals for installing companies. The installing electrician's TDLR license was never the gap; the kitchen-table sale was, and that's what Chapter 1806 targets. (Statutory exemptions exist, and the framework doesn't apply to contracts signed before the Act's effective date — TDLR's implementing rules track both.)
What it requires
- Registration. Retailers and salespersons register with TDLR — the occupational-registration heart of the law.
- Contract standards. TDLR's rules govern the form and format of solar contracts, aimed at the fine-print problems (costs, financing, liens, warranty terms) that generated the complaint surge.
- Disclosures and education. Sellers must provide required disclosures and educational materials when selling, leasing, or offering — with accurate cost and financing details mandated at solicitation. Companion legislation also directed consumer information guides through the PUCT and utilities.
- A code of conduct with named prohibitions — including the classic scam move: falsely stating or implying affiliation with a public utility or government agency. (No solar company is "with Oncor." Ever.)
- Insurance requirements for retailers, plus a duty to supervise salespersons and to keep registration information current with TDLR.
- A cancellation right. Homeowners get five business days to cancel a covered residential solar contract without penalty — the Act's most immediately useful consumer tool.
- Teeth. Civil and administrative penalties, with reported enhancements for egregious conduct and for targeting seniors — figures up to six digits in severe cases have been reported. Complaints route to TDLR for post-effective-date conduct (the AG's consumer protection division for earlier incidents).
The timeline that matters
The Act phased in — and the phase-in is where installers get caught flat-footed:
- September 1, 2025: the Act took effect; consumer-protection and contract provisions live.
- Through mid-2026: TDLR built its implementing rules with a stakeholder workgroup — proposed in early 2026, adopted rules published June 2026 covering registration, insurance, contract form/format, disclosures, and the code of conduct.
- September 1, 2026: registration becomes mandatory and full enforcement begins. Per TDLR: from this date, residential solar retailers and salespersons must be registered to conduct sales or leases.
What installers should do about it (now)
If you sell — not just install — this is your law: register the company and every salesperson before the September 2026 line; rebuild the contract template against TDLR's adopted form/format rules; script the required disclosures into the sales process (and document delivery); audit third-party dealer networks for registration, because their violation becomes your customer's bad experience; and bake the five-day cancellation mechanics into scheduling so a rescission never lands after materials are ordered. Compliance status is operational data like any license: TexPTO keeps your TDLR registration in the company document library alongside your electrical licenses, and reminds you ahead of the September 2026 date — so the deadline arrives as a task on a list rather than a scramble.
For homeowners, the practical upshot is a short checklist: ask for the TDLR registration, expect written disclosures, use the five days if anything feels rushed, and treat utility-affiliation claims as the end of the conversation. More in How to Vet a Texas Solar Installer.
FAQ
Does SB 1036 apply to installers or salespeople? Both populations on the sales side: retailer companies and individual salespersons. The electrical installation itself remains under the existing TDLR electrician licensing.
When did registration become mandatory? September 1, 2026 — the Act itself was effective September 1, 2025, with contract and consumer provisions live from the start.
Does it cover old contracts? No — TDLR's rules confirm the chapter doesn't apply to solar contracts entered before September 1, 2025.
Where do complaints go? TDLR for conduct under the Act; the Texas Attorney General's consumer protection division for pre-effective-date incidents.
Sources
- SB 1036 Senate committee analysis (Chapter 1806 structure; registration; disclosures; prohibited practices): https://legiscan.com/TX/supplement/SB1036/id/562702/Texas-2025-SB1036-Analysis_Senate_Committee_Report_.html
- TDLR proposed and adopted implementing rules, Texas Register (scope, registration/insurance, contract form, code of conduct, pre-Act contract exemption): https://www.sos.texas.gov/texreg/archive/March132026/Proposed%20Rules/16.ECONOMIC%20REGULATION.html and https://www.sos.state.tx.us/texreg/archive/June262026/Adopted%20Rules/16.ECONOMIC%20REGULATION.html
- TDLR Electricians "At a Glance" (Sept. 1, 2026 registration requirement): https://www.tdlr.texas.gov/media/pdf/ELC%20at%20a%20Glance.pdf
- Reported complaint statistics, penalties, and consumer guidance: https://meterplan.com/blog/sb-1036-texas-solar-regulation and https://austinhappens.com/texas-solar-scams-what-the-new-law-changes-and-how-to-protect-your-home/
General information, not legal advice. Statutory text and TDLR's adopted rules govern — verify current requirements before relying on them.