Is your solar company registered with TDLR?

The author is a TDLR-registered solar salesperson, and I sell subscription solar for a living. So this is the rulebook I work under, and this page is about how to check people like me. Don't take my word for any of it. Every rule below links to the text it comes from.

What does TDLR regulate in residential solar?

The sale or lease of a residential solar energy system in Texas, meaning a system intended or designed primarily for family, personal, or household use. Texas Occupations Code chapter 1806, enacted by Senate Bill 1036 in 2025, gave that job to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR). The chapter applies to contracts signed on or after September 1, 2025.

It arrived in stages. The contract requirements and the five-day right to cancel started on September 1, 2025. Registration of retailers and salespeople, and TDLR's power to enforce the prohibited-acts section, started on September 1, 2026 (TDLR, What's in Effect When). TDLR's detailed rules for the program, 16 Texas Administrative Code chapter 71, took effect July 1, 2026, and the contract, conduct and enforcement parts of them apply from September 1, 2026.

TDLR's rules define a "lease" broadly: any arrangement where you agree, for payment, to have a system installed on your property without owning it. That definition includes a power purchase agreement. TDLR's own disclosure form also lists an energy service agreement as a transaction type. Whether a particular agreement falls inside chapter 1806 is a question for TDLR or a lawyer, not for this page.

Some systems are outside the law entirely. Chapter 1806 does not apply to a system sold or leased for commercial or nonresidential property, for a multifamily building of more than four units or stories, before September 1, 2025, or in connection with new residential construction. Temporary or emergency systems, single-appliance systems and systems under one kilowatt are out too. That new-construction exemption matters if your builder put the panels on before you bought. And in adopting its rules, TDLR said that covering battery-only sales would likely need a change to the statute.

Who has to register with TDLR?

Two kinds of registrant. A solar salesperson is an individual who sells or leases residential solar for compensation, and must be registered and selling on behalf of a registered solar retailer. A solar retailer is the business that employs or contracts with those salespeople. Registration became mandatory on September 1, 2026.

Getting registered is more than paperwork. Each salesperson, and each controlling person of a retailer, has to pass TDLR's criminal history criteria. Retailers have to carry general liability insurance covering what they and their salespeople do. Both renew every year, and a registration cannot be transferred to someone else. A salesperson can work for more than one retailer, and the retailer has to check at hiring that its salespeople are registered.

There is one exemption you should know about, because it explains a blank you might see. A licensed electrical contractor can sell solar without a retailer registration, and the contractor's own employees can sell without a salesperson registration. Their contracts still have to meet the contract and cancellation rules. On the disclosure form, an exempt contractor lists its electrical contractor license number where a retailer number would go, and its salesperson writes "NA" in the salesperson line. A third-party sales agent working for that contractor is not exempt and has to be registered.

How do I look up a solar company or salesperson on TDLR?

Use TDLR's Online Licensing Services search, which is where TDLR sends you for solar registrations. You can search by the company's name, the salesperson's name, or a registration number. It is free and needs no account.

These are the steps as we walked them on September 28, 2026:

1. OpenTDLR's Online Licensing Services page. This is the "Search Licenses" link on TDLR's residential solar page. Ignore the login box.
2. Under "Search the License Database", click the "license search" link.
3. To look up a company, click "Search by Name" and type the business name into "Organization Name". Try the name on the contract, and try again with the name on the salesperson's badge or shirt if it is different.
4. To look up the salesperson, click "Search by Name" and fill in "Last Name" (at least two letters) and "First Name".
5. If you have a registration number from the contract or the disclosure form, click "Search by License Number" instead, pick "Solar Retailers" or "Solar Salesperson" from the License Type list, and enter the number.
6. Tick the "I'm not a robot" box and press Search.

TDLR says the results show the exact level of licensure as the "License Rank", and that it updates the data daily and treats the search as a primary source for verifying a license. If you start from TDLR's mainVerify a Licensepage instead, it lists Solar Residential Retailer and Solar Residential Salesperson as license types, and picking either one sent us on to the same Online Licensing Services page.

If you would rather scan the whole list, TDLR publishes the registered solar retailers and salespeople as two spreadsheet files on itslicense files page, updated every day.

If nobody shows up, do not conclude the worst straight away. Check the spelling, try the legal business name, and check whether the seller is an exempt electrical contractor, whose license sits under TDLR's electrician licenses rather than the solar ones. TDLR's search page says to call customer service at 800-803-9202 when a license is not found. And you can ask the seller directly: the law requires a solar retailer or salesperson to give you their name and registration number when you ask, and a salesperson must also give you the supervising retailer's name, contact details and registration number. A registered salesperson can answer that in ten seconds. If yours gets vague about it, take note.

What has to be in a Texas solar contract?

The names and TDLR registration numbers of both the retailer and the salesperson, plus a set of terms the statute and TDLR's rules spell out. The contract also has to state your five-day right to cancel, the last calendar date you can cancel, and where to send the notice.

Here is the list, from Occupations Code sections 1806.154 to 1806.156 and 16 TAC section 71.40. A solar contract must:

• be written in clear, understandable language that is easy to read;
• state the name, business address, registration number, business email and business phone number of both the solar retailer and the solar salesperson;
• set out, prominently and in plain language, any energy production guarantee, the terms of any warranty, and what each side can do if the other defaults;
• provide that a Texas-licensed electrical contractor will do the installation, and name that contractor and its license number, or give a list of contractors the installer will be chosen from;
• provide that the retailer or installer will get any government permit the installation needs and the utility's or co-op's approval to interconnect;
• prominently display your right to cancel, the last calendar date of the cancellation period, and the mailing or email address for your notice;
• if a lender affiliated with or referred by the seller is financing it, require that lender to cancel the loan when you cancel within the five days, and require the retailer to pay off the loan balance if TDLR orders the contract canceled after a hearing.

The salesperson has to hand you a printed copy of the signed contract at signing. An electronic-only copy is allowed only if you give an email address, the salesperson checks that you can open it, and you consent electronically to electronic delivery in place of paper. Even then it has to be a PDF, and you can ask for a printed copy later. Ask within five business days of signing and the retailer has one business day to deliver it.

Our solar contract checker looks for this. It reads a PDF or phone photos of your contract on your own device, flags whether the document states a TDLR registration, quotes the passage if it finds one, and gives you the question to ask about the retailer's and salesperson's numbers. It also pulls out the cancellation clause, the escalator and the lien language.

What is on the TDLR disclosure form?

TDLR wrote a two-page Consumer Disclosure Statement, and its rule, 16 TAC section 71.41, says the salesperson must give it to you, fully filled in, before you sign. You and the salesperson both sign it. The retailer and salesperson must make sure it is accurate, and the terms on it count as part of your contract. If you are 65 or older, or tell the salesperson you are not fluent in English, you get a printed copy. TDLR also publishes the form in Spanish, and the rule says you get it in your preferred language when TDLR has a version in that language.

The numbered items on the current form (August 2026) are:

1. your name;
2. the address where the system will go;
3. the retailer's name and TDLR registration number;
4. the salesperson's name and TDLR registration number;
5. your total payment obligation, including every payment over the full term of any loan;
6. the transaction type: cash purchase, financed purchase, lease, power purchase agreement, prepaid PPA or energy service agreement;
7. the type of contract, and whether installation is included;
8. whether it is financed through a loan, credit sale or lease, whether you got a federal Truth in Lending disclosure, who the finance company or lease assignee is, and whether a lien can be placed on your home for failure to pay;
9. whether battery storage is included (the form notes that without one, a system's ability to supply power in an outage may be limited);
10. whether the retailer provides maintenance, and what kind;
11. for a sale, the cost broken out: system, storage, installation labor, warranty, financing points, dealer fees and other costs, whether they can vary, and whether rebates or tax incentives are included;
12. for a lease or PPA, the monthly payment, number of months, whether every payment is the same, whether a PPA payment is estimated or actual, other costs, and who is responsible for monitoring, repairs, inverter and battery replacement, roof removal and reinstallation, and removal at the end of the term;
13. estimated peak generation in kilowatts;
14. estimated average monthly generation in kilowatt-hours;
15. whether the system connects to the utility or co-op, and the buyback or charge rate;
16. who gets HOA approval, if it is needed;
17. whether there is an arbitration clause, and whether you can opt out of it for a period;
18. whether the agreement can be transferred to a buyer if you sell the home (yes, no, or subject to provider approval);
19. who pays if the system has to come off and go back on for roof repair or replacement.

TDLR's knowledge base adds that every cost on the form must be itemized. Items 8 and 18 are the two I would read twice. A lien and a transfer rule are what turn solar into a problem at closing, which is the subject ofdo solar panels put a lien on your house andwhere to search for a solar lien.

Rule 71.43 adds one more document: TDLR's educational brochure, which the salesperson must give you at least 24 hours before you can sign. The brochure is onTDLR's forms pagein English and Spanish if you never got one.

How long do I have to cancel a solar contract in Texas?

Five business days after you sign. You cancel by written notice, and the law says it is without penalty or further obligation. Business days leave out Saturdays, Sundays and the legal holidays listed in Texas Government Code section 662.021.

That holiday list is longer than most people expect. TDLR's knowledge base spells it out, and it includes Texas-only days such as Texas Independence Day, San Jacinto Day and the Friday after Thanksgiving, so count carefully or use the date printed in your contract. The contract has to show the last calendar day of the cancellation window and the mailing or email address for your notice. Under TDLR's rule, the statement of your right, how to cancel and where to send it must be in bold capital letters in 14-point type or larger.

If the contract leaves out the address, you can send written notice to the retailer by any reasonable method. If the contract only allows cancellation by mail, your notice counts on the day you mail it. Once you cancel on time, the retailer has to process it, arrange removal of anything already installed, and refund money you paid. If a lender tied to the seller financed the deal, the contract has to make that lender cancel the loan.

This five-day right sits alongside the federal and Texas three-day rights for sales made at your home. How those fit together, and what your options are after the window closes, is onhow to cancel a solar contract. Cancel in writing, keep a copy, and note the date you sent it.

What does November 1, 2026 mean?

It is the end date TDLR gave when it suspended enforcement of two of its new rules: section 71.41, the required disclosure form, and section 71.43, the educational brochure. TDLR announced the suspension on August 21, 2026, to give retailers time to adjust.

In practice, a Texas contract signed before November 1 might arrive without the disclosure form or the brochure. Ask for them anyway. The form is a two-page summary of the terms that matter, and a seller who can fill it in accurately should not mind doing so.

The suspension names those two rules and nothing else. TDLR's notice does not mention registration, the statute's contract provisions, the five-day right to cancel, or the prohibited-acts section, and all of those are in force now. And the date is TDLR's to change. Check theprogram pagebefore you rely on it, because this page is only as current as its last update.

How do I file a complaint with TDLR about a solar company?

Online, through TDLR's complaint form, by choosing Residential Solar Retailers as the program. You can also use TDLR's paper complaint form or call 800-803-9202. TDLR's form says a complaint must be filed within two years of the event it is about.

The online form is atga.tdlr.texas.gov/form/Complaint. It asks for the name, license number and company of the person you are complaining about, has a field for the date the contract was signed, and lets you attach documents. Attach the contract, the disclosure form if you got one, and anything the salesperson gave you or texted you. TDLR says it may not open an investigation if a complaint lacks enough information to show a violation. Thepaper formcarries its own filing directions, and TDLR's mailing address is P.O. Box 12157, Austin, TX 78711.

You can file anonymously, but you will not get status updates. If you do give your details and TDLR opens an investigation, the form warns that a copy of your complaint, including your name and contact information, goes to the company or person you complained about. TDLR takes complaints against solar retailers, solar salespeople, and the electrical contractors who install or repair the panels.

What TDLR can do about it is set by statute. The prohibited acts include false, misleading or deceptive statements, falsely implying a connection to a utility or government agency, failing to provide required disclosures or educational materials, selling at a home with a posted no-soliciting sign unless someone living there says otherwise, and letting anyone other than a licensed electrical contractor do the installation. After notice and a hearing, TDLR can order a solar contract canceled and the money you paid refunded, up to what you paid. Civil penalties are capped at $2,500 per violation and $50,000 in total for similar violations, rising to $10,000 and $100,000 where someone over 65 was harmed. A refund from TDLR does not stop you from going to court for other damages. Whether any of this fits your situation is a question for a lawyer; this page only tells you what the law says.

Get your own numbers

Before you sign anything in Texas, look up the retailer and the salesperson, read the disclosure form against the contract, and write the last cancellation date on your calendar. If you want to see how a subscription compares for your roof, run your bill through the estimator, and hold me to the same checks.