2025 Solar Incentives Guide for Burlington, KY - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives mitigate the cost of installing a solar panel system on your home. Financial incentives like these are in place to encourage more homeowners to switch their home over to renewable energy. The incentives might include upfront discounts, cash back or credit towards your monthly utility bill. Some incentives are offered by the federal government, some by the state of Kentucky and some by your utility company, county or municipality. Some broad categories of solar incentives include:

• Tax Credits: Tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions that lower the amount of income tax you owe the federal government. (This is different from a tax deduction.)
• Tax Exemptions: Sales tax exemptions are applied at the point of sale for your solar system. Property tax exemptions allow you to exclude the value that your solar panels add when you're calculating how much property tax you need to pay on your house.
• Rebates: Some solar companies will help you claim a rebate, or partial refund after purchase, for your solar system. States or counties will also offer limited-time rebates at various times. If you receive a rebate, that amount will usually come off your total price before any tax credits are calculated.
• Net Metering: Net metering is an incentive you can get after your solar system is up and running. If you have a net metering agreement with your Burlington utility company, the company will subtract the value of the excess energy produced by your solar system from your utility bill each month. In some areas, this credit is dollar-for-dollar, while in others you may make back a percentage of the value.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal incentives are the kind of incentives that you are most likely to have heard of. The Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC, is likely the most well-known federal solar incentive. The ITC provides you with a tax credit for a predetermined percentage of your solar system's cost.

The ITC can be credited towards the value of solar panels installed on your primary or secondary residence in the United States. The solar system must have been installed after January 1, 2006, on a property owned by you for you to be eligible for the credit. Originally, the ITC covered 30% of all system costs (panels, labor, equipment and accessories), although this amount has fluctuated over the last few years between 26-30%. The installation date of your solar system will determine what percentage you are eligible for. There is no cap on the claim amount.

To find out exactly how much the ITC could save you, contact your local Burlington solar panel installer.

In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act made revisions to the ITC, now dubbed the Clean Energy Credit. The Clean Energy Credit bolsters the current credit, increasing it up to 30% for solar systems installed between 2022 and 2032. At this point, the percentage will decrease slightly each year until the program expires in 2035. Starting in 2023, it will also be easier to qualify for credits for energy storage systems under this new program.

More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. The best way to learn more about how the new Clean Energy Credit will apply to you is to get in touch with your local Burlington solar panel installation expert.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Some solar incentives may be provided at the state and local level. Similar to federal incentives, these may include rebates, tax credits and more. These incentives may be given out by your county or municipality, or by the Kentucky government. Some are ongoing, while others are available for a limited time.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Burlington

You can receive solar incentives from the federal government and the Kentucky government, as well as from your local utility company. Growing availability of solar initiatives in the past 15 years has helped increase solar adoption nationwide. If you're ready to make the change to solar energy, getting in touch with your local Burlington solar panel installation expert is an excellent place to start.