2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Fulton, IL - Tax Credits & Rebates

What Solar Tax Credits, Incentives, and Rebates are Available in Fulton?

Source: https://www.dsireusa.org/

Solar incentives are designed to encourage homeowners to switch their home over to renewable energy by offering incentives that lower the financial burden of solar panel installation and use. You might qualify for various kinds of incentives, including cash back, discounts or monthly utility bill credits, depending on your situation. Certain incentives come from your specific utility company, county or municipality, some from the Illinois government and others from the federal government. Some broad categories of solar incentives include:

• Rebates: Solar companies may help you claim a rebate, or partial refund of your purchase, for your solar panels. Counties or states will also sometimes offer limited-time rebates. The value of a rebate will usually be deducted from the total price before any tax credits are calculated.
• Tax Exemptions: Tax exemptions can come in two forms. The first is sales tax exemption, which is applied when you purchase solar panels. The second is property tax exemption, which allows you to ignore the added value of your solar system when calculating property tax for your house.
• Net Metering: Net metering is an incentive you can get after your solar panels are up and running. If you've signed a net metering agreement with your Fulton utility company, it will subtract the value of the excess energy produced by your solar system from your monthly utility bill. In some places, this credit is dollar-for-dollar, while in other areas you may receive a refund equivalent to a percentage of the value.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and similar performance-based incentives may be available to you if the solar system on your home produces more than a specified (typically small) amount of electricity. This category of incentives is normally handled at the state level. You can sell any SRECs you have to your utility company or other buyers, and the money you make is usually considered part of your taxable income.
• Tax Credits: Tax credits lower, dollar-for-dollar, the amount of income tax you owe the government. These differ from tax deductions.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal incentives are the type of incentives that you are most likely to have some knowledge of. A federal incentive many people are likely familiar with is the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC). The ITC is a tax credit for a given percentage of the cost of your solar system.

The ITC applies towards solar systems installed after January 1, 2006 and under this program you can deduct from your taxes a percentage of the total cost of solar panels, equipment, accessories and labor. You can receive this credit for a solar panel system installed on a primary or secondary residence in the United States that you own. The original amount you could claim was 30% of the total cost, although depending on when the project was completed, your credit may range from 26-30%. There is no maximum claim amount.

Wondering how the ITC applies to your specific situation? Reach out to your local Fulton solar panel installation expert to get more information.

In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act laid out new provisions for the ITC, now called the Clean Energy Credit. The new Clean Energy Credit is valid until 2035. Homeowners are now eligible for a 30% credit for solar systems that began installation on or after January 1, 2022 and will be done by December 31, 2032. This credit will then see a slight annual decrease until the date of expiration. The expansion also makes claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before, beginning in 2023.

Click here to learn more about the new Inflation Reduction Act. To better understand how the new Clean Energy Credit applies to you, get in touch with your local Fulton solar installers.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Rebates, tax credits and more can be claimed at multiple levels. On top of federal solar incentives, there are often state and local ones as well. Some incentives are ongoing, while others are offered for only a limited time. These local incentives could come from the Illinois government, or from your specific county or municipality.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Fulton

There are a variety of solar incentives: those provided by local utility companies, those provided by the federal government and those provided by the Illinois government, to name a few. The use of solar energy has grown tremendously in the last 15 years, partially due to these incentives. It is a good idea to talk to your local Fulton solar installation expert for more information about these incentives and to make sure that you're getting the largest number possible for your solar system.