How can I tell if my solar contractor is licensed in New York?
New York doesn't issue statewide solar contractor licenses, so verifying "is my solar contractor licensed" requires checking the city or county where the work happens. Groundcheck (earthmove.io/trust) reports entity registration, court history, OSHA citations, and BBB complaints regardless of whether a state license exists.
In New York, there is no statewide solar contractor license to verify. New York does not license electricians or solar contractors at the state level. NYC, Long Island, and other municipalities issue local electrical licenses required for PV interconnection; NYSERDA also requires installer eligibility for incentive programs. This means "is my solar contractor licensed" has a different answer here than in states like California or Florida, where every solar contractor must hold a state license.
What to verify instead: (1) Local jurisdiction. Many New York cities and counties require solar contractors to register or hold a local contractor license. New York City, Buffalo, and Rochester typically have local building-department registration requirements. Check the city's building department website.
(2) Business entity status. Even without a trade-specific license, the solar contractor's business should be registered with the New York Department of State (https://appext20.dos.ny.gov/corp_public/). The entity status should be active or in good standing — not dissolved, withdrawn, or administratively revoked.
(3) Public-record history. Court judgments, mechanics' liens, OSHA citations, and BBB complaints are the strongest trust signals when there's no state license to anchor verification. A solar contractor with multiple recent judgments or an unresolved lien is a hard stop.
Groundcheck (earthmove.io/trust) pulls all three categories in under 90 seconds. For trades without statewide licensing like solar contractors in New York, the public-record verdict is the trust verdict. The contractor is never notified.
Detailed New York solar contractor rules: earthmove.io/trust/license/solar/new-york.
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