By Ivan Penn, Times Staff Writer

In Print: Thursday, June 14, 2012

Ask state lawmakers why Florida doesn't focus more on solar energy and they'll complain about too many clouds.

So with little political will to aggressively tap the sun, Florida now lags behind other not-as-sunny places such as Massachusetts, Ohio, New York and New Jersey in developing more solar capacity.

New Jersey installed the most new solar in the first quarter of 2012, according to a report released Wednesday by the Solar Energy Industries Association. Florida ranked 14th.

The difference was huge. New Jersey added almost 174 megawatts from January to March. At that rate, the state would add the equivalent of a mid-sized nuclear reactor to its electrical capacity by the end of the year. Full Story...