Avila Solar Drafting produces permit-ready solar plan sets for installers working anywhere in Texas — Dallas–Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, Austin and every AHJ between them. Standard turnaround is 2–3 business days from a complete intake. Every set is drawn to the NEC cycle your specific jurisdiction has adopted, not the cycle the state adopted, because in Texas those are frequently not the same thing.
Key takeaways
- Texas has been on the 2023 NEC statewide since September 1, 2023. TDLR has proposed adopting the 2026 NEC effective September 1, 2026 under 16 TAC §73.100 — treat that date as expected rather than settled, and confirm it at intake.
- Cities adopt on their own ordinances, so adopted cycles differ across metros — San Antonio moved to the 2023 NEC and the 2024 I-codes on May 1, 2025, while Dallas and Houston remain on 2021 I-codes.
- Houston is the only major Texas metro accepting SolarAPP+, and projects in the 140 mph windborne debris region are excluded from it.
- Oncor and CenterPoint both require the AC disconnect within 10 feet of the meter — and Oncor explicitly will not accept a molded-case breaker.
- 2–3 business days standard, 1–2 for Fast Roof, 1 business day when Fast Roof is paired with a Roof Order or EagleView XML. Free revisions for 6 months from order.
Which NEC cycle governs your Texas permit
Texas has been on the 2023 NEC statewide since September 1, 2023, and the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation has proposed adopting the 2026 NEC with a stated effective date of September 1, 2026. The proposed amendment to 16 TAC §73.100, published in the Texas Register on March 6, 2026, reads: “Effective September 1, 2026, the department adopts the 2026 National Electrical Code (NEC) as approved by the National Fire Protection Association, Inc. on September 9, 2025.” Final adoption is not yet confirmable from the codified rule, which still reads 2023, so we treat that date as expected rather than settled and confirm it at intake. A city’s own ordinance governs its permit cycle regardless.
The statewide floor is not the whole answer. Municipalities adopt electrical and building codes by their own ordinances, on their own schedules, with their own amendments — and a city’s own ordinance governs its permit cycle regardless of where the state rule lands. Austin has already adopted the 2026 NEC by its own ordinance, effective September 1, 2026. Other jurisdictions will lag. A set drawn to the state floor can still be kicked back by a city enforcing a different amendment package.
We confirm the adopted cycle and the local amendments for the reviewing AHJ before drafting, on every Texas order. For the background on how Texas code cycles, AHJs and interconnection interact, our Texas plan set guide covers it in depth.
What Texas AHJs actually check
Adopted code cycles across the four largest metros, as of August 2026:
| Metro | Electrical | Building / residential | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas | Verify at submittal — the city’s Current City Code page lists the 2020 NEC with Dallas amendments (effective June 13, 2022), while a Chapter 56 amendment package adopting the 2023 NEC carried a stated effective date of May 23, 2025 | 2021 IBC / IRC with Dallas amendments (effective May 12, 2023) | Traditional plan review |
| Houston | 2023 NEC | 2021 IRC or 2021 IBC | SolarAPP+ available since July 15, 2024, with exclusions |
| San Antonio | 2023 NEC | 2024 IBC / IRC (effective May 1, 2025) | Ahead of Dallas and Houston on the I-codes |
| Austin | 2023 NEC; 2026 NEC effective September 1, 2026 | 2024 IBC / IRC (effective July 10, 2025) | City permit and Austin Energy review are separate submissions |
Fort Worth adopted the 2023 NEC effective March 1, 2024, Irving effective April 22, 2024, and Plano on August 1, 2025 — three different dates inside one metro. This is the single most common source of avoidable rejections in Texas, and it’s why a set that cleared Plano last month is not automatically drawn to Dallas’s requirements. The broader pattern is covered in why permits get rejected and in the permitting requirements installers miss.
Metro by metro: what actually changes
Dallas–Fort Worth
The Metroplex is the least synchronized market in the state. Fort Worth adopted the 2023 NEC effective March 1, 2024 (Ord. 26721-02-2024), Irving effective April 22, 2024 (Ord. 2024-10884, with the 2024 IBC and IRC following effective May 1, 2026 under Ord. 2026-11253), and Plano on August 1, 2025 (Ord. 2025-6-13). Dallas enforces the 2021 IBC and IRC with Dallas amendments, effective May 12, 2023, and its electrical cycle is worth confirming directly with the reviewer — the city’s own published sources have disagreed on which edition is current.
Most of the metro is Oncor territory, which sets the disconnect detail on the drawing. There is no SolarAPP+ path in the Metroplex; submittals go through traditional plan review. Three Dallas pages cover the metro in detail: Dallas solar plan sets for the deliverable and turnaround, Dallas permit design for the submittal package and the city’s unresolved code cycle, and Dallas design and drafting for the electrical and structural engineering.
Houston
Houston is the one major Texas metro with an instant-approval path. The Houston Permitting Center has accepted SolarAPP+ for solar photovoltaic applications since July 15, 2024 — with one exclusion that decides the submittal path before anything is drawn: “Projects located in areas where the basic wind speed design is 140 mph or greater, also known as a windborne debris region, are not eligible for SolarAPP+” and must use traditional review.
Houston runs the 2023 NEC with either the 2021 IRC or the 2021 IBC, and requires PE-sealed engineering wherever added structural loads are involved. CenterPoint Energy is the serving utility across most of the metro.
Three Houston pages go deeper than this summary: Houston solar plan sets for the deliverable and turnaround, Houston permit design for the CE-1198 submittal package and the SolarAPP+ eligibility test, and Houston design and drafting for the wind determination, heat-corrected conductor sizing and the CenterPoint disconnect.
San Antonio
San Antonio ran on the 2020 NEC until May 1, 2025, then adopted the 2023 NEC and the 2024 IBC and IRC together under Ordinance 2025-01-30-0075 — putting it ahead of Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston, which all remain on 2021 I-codes. A set drawn to a Houston or Dallas standard is not automatically drawn to San Antonio’s.
San Antonio also publishes the clearest PE trigger in the state, in Information Bulletin 153 — covered in the stamp section below. CPS Energy handles interconnection as an independent track from the city permit.
Austin
Austin is a two-desk market, and that is where schedules slip. The City of Austin building permit and Austin Energy’s Distributed Generation Permit Application are separate submissions with separate requirements. Austin enforces the 2024 IBC and IRC, effective July 10, 2025, and has already adopted the 2026 NEC by its own Ordinance No. 20260423-048, effective September 1, 2026.
On the utility side, systems from 25 kW to 499 kW must submit drawings and specifications sealed by a Professional Engineer with the DGPA. Below 25 kW, Austin Energy approval is not required for the DGPA — but the city building permit still is, regardless of system size.
Interconnection: four utilities, four sets of rules
Texas interconnection is a separate track from the building permit, and the utility’s requirements shape the drawing.
Oncor (Dallas–Fort Worth and much of north and west Texas) requires a single separate visible, lockable, labeled AC disconnect between the meter and all distributed generation. Oncor’s residential requirements, revised May 1, 2025, state that the disconnect “must be located on an ACCESSIBLE, EXTERIOR wall within 10 feet of the Oncor Meter,” and that “Molded-case breakers are NOT considered acceptable VLLDs.” A placard is required if the disconnect sits beyond 10 feet or out of line of sight.
CenterPoint Energy (Houston) applies the same 10-foot rule to the AC disconnect, with a placard required beyond that distance or out of line of sight.
Austin Energy runs a Distributed Generation Permit Application separate from the City of Austin building permit. For systems from 25 kW to 499 kW, the application must be accompanied by a full set of drawings and specifications sealed by a Professional Engineer.
CPS Energy (San Antonio) treats permits and interconnection as independent tracks. Residential systems at or below 50 kWac using certified equipment do not require PE-stamped plans for CPS review; systems above 600 A do.
SB 1202 and third-party permit review
Texas Senate Bill 1202, passed by the 89th Legislature and codified at Local Government Code §247.0025, took effect September 1, 2025. It creates an optional third-party review pathway for home backup power permitting — solar and battery systems — and explicitly permits, but does not require, tools like SolarAPP+.
The practical effect for installers is that the review route can now differ from one jurisdiction to the next even where the adopted code is identical. It does not change what the drawing has to show; it changes who looks at it and how quickly. We confirm the review route along with the code cycle at intake.
When a Texas project needs a PE stamp
San Antonio publishes the clearest trigger of the four metros: PE-sealed engineering calculations are required for single-family, duplex and townhome buildings when a system weighs more than six pounds per square foot and is installed on a roof with a slope of less than 4:12. Note that the trigger is conjunctive — both conditions, not either one. It also applies where two or more existing roof coverings are present, or where a new structure such as a trellis or carport will support the array.
Houston requires PE-sealed engineering wherever added structural loads are involved. Austin Energy’s threshold sits at 25 kW on the interconnection side. CPS Energy requires a PE seal above 600 A.
We handle stamps in-house through our engineering stamps service, so a project that turns out to need one doesn’t restart your schedule. The triggers are covered in more detail under when a PE stamp applies and structural load calculations.
Turnaround, revisions and what’s included
Standard Texas plan sets ship in 2–3 business days from a complete intake. Fast Roof runs 1–2 business days, and 1 business day when paired with a Roof Order or EagleView XML. Revisions are free for 6 months from the order date.
Every set includes the cover sheet and code summary, site plan, roof plan with array layout and fire pathways, electrical single-line diagram, structural details, and the placard and labeling schedule for the adopted cycle. What’s in a plan set walks through each sheet. We guarantee accurate solar plan sets, drawn to the electrical and building code requirements of your specific jurisdiction and designed to pass first-time review.
Texas jurisdictions we submit to
We draw for AHJs across the state, including Dallas, Fort Worth, Irving, Plano, Garland, Arlington, Grand Prairie, Mesquite, McKinney, Frisco, Denton, Houston, Sugar Land, Pasadena, San Antonio, Austin, Round Rock, El Paso, Corpus Christi, Lubbock, Amarillo, Waco and Killeen — plus the smaller jurisdictions in between. Adopted cycles and amendments are confirmed per jurisdiction at intake rather than assumed from a neighbouring city.
What drives the cost of a Texas plan set
Pricing moves with roof complexity and plane count, whether a main panel upgrade or line-side tap is involved, whether energy storage is included, whether the array is roof or ground mount, whether a PE stamp is triggered, and how complete the site data is at intake. A Roof Order or EagleView XML at intake is the single biggest lever on both price and speed. Current figures for each product line are on the solar plan sets page.
Texas Solar Plan Sets FAQs
Which NEC edition applies to my Texas solar permit?
Texas has been on the 2023 NEC statewide since September 1, 2023. TDLR has proposed adopting the 2026 NEC effective September 1, 2026 under 16 TAC §73.100, published in the Texas Register in March 2026, but final adoption is not yet confirmable from the codified rule — so we treat that date as expected rather than settled and confirm it at intake. Individual cities adopt on their own ordinances, so the reviewing AHJ’s adopted cycle and amendments govern your submittal. We confirm it per order before drafting.
Do any Texas cities accept SolarAPP+?
Houston has accepted SolarAPP+ for solar photovoltaic applications since July 15, 2024. Projects located where the basic design wind speed is 140 mph or greater — the windborne debris region — are not eligible and must use the traditional submittal process.
What AC disconnect do Texas utilities require?
Oncor requires a visible, lockable, labeled AC disconnect on an accessible exterior wall within 10 feet of the meter, and does not accept molded-case breakers. CenterPoint applies the same 10-foot rule. Both require a placard where the disconnect is farther away or out of line of sight.
Is utility interconnection separate from the city permit in Texas?
Yes. Austin Energy’s Distributed Generation Permit Application and CPS Energy’s interconnection review are independent of the city building permit. Both submissions are required, and they can run on different timelines.
What did Texas SB 1202 change for solar permitting?
SB 1202, codified at Local Government Code §247.0025 and effective September 1, 2025, created an optional third-party review pathway for home backup power permitting. It permits but does not require tools like SolarAPP+, so the review route can differ between jurisdictions even where the adopted code is the same.
How fast can I get a Texas solar plan set?
2–3 business days for a standard set from a complete intake, 1–2 business days for Fast Roof, and 1 business day when Fast Roof is paired with a Roof Order or EagleView XML.
Do you cover the whole state?
Yes — Dallas–Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, Austin, El Paso, Corpus Christi, Lubbock, Amarillo and the smaller AHJs in between. We confirm the adopted code cycle and utility requirements for each jurisdiction at intake.
Start a Texas plan set
Texas plan sets fail review for local reasons — the wrong adopted cycle, a disconnect the utility won’t accept, a stamp nobody scoped. We draw to the AHJ’s adopted code cycle and the serving utility’s requirements, and back it with free revisions for six months.
Or call 971-410-0655 to talk through a jurisdiction before you order.
Avila Solar Drafting
11995 SW Walker Rd, Beaverton, OR 97005 · 971-410-0655 · info@avilasolar.com
We draft for Texas installers from our Beaverton, Oregon office — there is no Texas branch, and no markup for one.