The US seems to be intent on making rooftop solar panels go mainstream.

The Solar Automated Permit Processing (SolarAPP+) platform, developed by DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, will be an optional portal for local governments to process permit applications automatically. Approvals typically take a week or more currently, and permit-related costs can account for about a third of installers’ overall costs, DOE said. The software speeds the process up by standardizing requirements, streamlining the application and automating some approvals.