BESScheck

Battery storage rules: Los Angeles County, CA

Last checked against primary sources: July 2026

The most populous US county is writing BESS into its zoning code right now: the Board of Supervisors directed Regional Planning to regulate BESS (Dec 2023) and update the Renewable Energy Ordinance (Apr 2024). Public outreach ran through 2025; the technical study published March 2026; the draft ordinance and CEQA review are still ahead. Until adoption, projects run the existing permit path — with LA County Fire review required for every ESS install.

No moratorium

No county moratorium. The Board chose an ordinance process: Dec 19 2023 direction to add BESS regulations to the zoning code; Apr 29 2024 direction to update the REO. Named Board considerations: overconcentration of large primary-use BESS, Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone hazards, noise, decommissioning protocols, and emerging technologies. LA County Planning REO update (Board directions 12/19/2023 + 4/29/2024)

Fire and building codes in force

How a project is permitted

Today: utility-scale ESS is a "complex" permit via EpicLA with Regional Planning review and an electrical permit from Public Works Building & Safety. LA County Fire Department involvement is required for every ESS install — its review is specific to the BESS make and model (worst-case failure scenarios, technical test reports, modeling), and Building & Safety inspectors are instructed to end an ESS inspection if the Fire field inspection is not yet complete. The CEC AB 205 opt-in (>50 MW / ≥200 MWh) remains available as the state track.

Sources

Check a specific system

For a proposal or a system you're evaluating, answer a few questions in BESScheck: you get the rules that apply here, a checklist of what to ask, and the sources behind each line.