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Solar Owner Help In New Mexico

In New Mexico, the Construction Industries Division of the Regulation and Licensing Department licenses solar contractors and takes complaints. Here is what an owner whose installer is gone should know.

Who Licenses Solar Work

New Mexico Administrative Code 14.5.2, the state permit rule, says anyone bidding on or installing a solar PV system must hold a division license in the EE-98, EL-1, or ER-1 class, as applicable, with a GB-98 license allowed in some cases. It says structural changes on a home allow a GB-02 license, and that installers must hold a journeyman certificate in the EE-98J, EL-1J, or ER-1J class or work as an apprentice under a certified journeyman. It also requires a structural analysis by a New Mexico licensed engineer in certain cases where panels add load to the roof.

How To Check A License

Start at the Regulation and Licensing Department license verification page, and match the license class to the work in your contract.

Where To File A Complaint

The Construction Industries Division investigation page says you file a Request for Investigation online and upload contracts, invoices, receipts, texts, and payment records, plus 5 to 10 color photos of the problem. Paper forms are available from cid.compliance@rld.nm.gov. It is clear about limits:

• The division cannot handle a financial or contractual dispute unless you have a court judgment.
• Some cities and counties have their own building departments, and complaints there may go to them.
• The division cannot act as your attorney or represent you in court.

We did not find a state homeowner recovery fund for contractor losses in the division pages we read or in a search of the Regulation and Licensing Department site, and the division's page says it cannot assist in recovering financial losses. Ask the department whether any fund applies, and ask an attorney about your options if you lost money.

Net Metering Status

New Mexico Administrative Code 17.9.570, the Public Regulation Commission rule on qualifying facilities, applies to investor owned utilities, rural electric cooperatives, and municipal utilities under the commission's jurisdiction. Its section on systems up to 10 kW, last replaced on May 24, 2022, says you are billed under the same rate structure you would have without solar. When you produce more than you use in a billing period, the utility either credits or pays you at its energy rate, or gives you kilowatt hour credits that carry forward month to month. If your utility uses kilowatt hour credits and you leave its system, it pays unused credits at its energy rate. Ask your utility which method it uses, and note that larger systems fall under a different section.

Steps For Any Orphaned System

1. Gather your contract, permit, equipment list, warranty papers, and any loan or lease documents.
2. Call each equipment maker with your serial numbers. EnergySage guide to installer bankruptcy (updated January 7, 2026) says manufacturer warranties remain valid regardless of installer status, and that the manufacturer can often point you to installers certified on its equipment. It also quotes a service coordinator warning that if an installer is not certified on your equipment, those warranties could be determined to be void, so ask the manufacturer before you hire.
3. If you lease or have a power purchase agreement, contact the company that owns the system before hiring anyone. See Solar Lease Or PPA When The Company Is Gone.
4. Check any new company's license with the agency above before you sign, and get the scope and price in writing.

Agency rules, rates, and contact details change. Treat the dates on the sources here as a snapshot and confirm on the agency's own site.

If you want a local service company to look at your system, describe it in the system check form. We name the one company before anyone contacts you.

Related: Installer Went Out Of Business, Solar Warranty Help, Solar System Not Producing.