2025 Solar Incentives Guide for Fall River, MA - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are meant to encourage homeowners to switch to renewable energy by offering financial incentives that lower the burden of solar panel installation and use. The incentives may include upfront discounts, cash back or credit towards your monthly utility bill. Some incentives are provided by the federal government, some by the Massachusetts government and some by your utility company, county or municipality. Some broad categories of solar incentives include:

• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and similar performance-based incentives may be available to you if your solar system produces over a specified (usually small) amount of electricity. This category of incentives is usually handled by the state government. You can sell SRECs to your utility company or other buyers, and the money you make is generally considered part of your taxable income.
• Tax Credits: Different from tax deductions, tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions in the amount of income tax that you owe the government.
• Tax Exemptions: These could come in the form of property tax exemptions, which would allow you to ignore the value added by your solar panels when paying property tax on your home. You could also look for exemptions on sales tax at the time of purchase.
• Rebates: Solar companies may help you claim a rebate, or partial refund of your purchase, for your solar system. States or counties will also offer limited-time rebates at various times. Any rebates you receive will usually be deducted from the total price before tax credits are calculated.
• Net Metering: You can sign a net metering contract with your Fall River utility company, that may apply to all or a percentage of the excess electricity that is generated by your solar panels. Your utility company will then subtract this value from your utility bill each month.

Federal Solar Incentives

When thinking about solar incentives, federal incentives may be the first thing that comes to mind. The solar incentive that you're most familiar with is probably the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which gives you a credit on your taxes equal to a percentage of your solar system's cost.

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

To best understand how the ITC could apply to your situation, call your local Fall River solar panel installation expert and ask for more information.

In August 2022, the ITC (now called the Clean Energy Credit) was bolstered by the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. The new Clean Energy Credit now runs until 2035. Homeowners can now apply for a 30% credit for solar systems that began installation after January 1, 2022, and are completed by the end of 2032. This credit will then be decreased by a few percentage points every year until the date of expiration. Starting in 2023, it will also be easier to claim credits for energy storage systems under this new program.

More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. To understand how the new Clean Energy Credit will apply to you, talk to your local Fall River solar installation expert.

State & Local Solar Incentives

In addition to those provided at the federal level, there are often also state solar incentives. Tax credits, rebates and more can be offered at a more local level. The incentives — which may be given by the state of Massachusetts, or by your county or municipality — could be offered on an ongoing basis, or for only a limited time.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Fall River

Solar incentives may be provided by the federal government, the Massachusetts government or your local utility company. The large number of available solar incentives has contributed to a large increase in solar energy use in the last 15 years. When you're ready to make the change to solar energy, talking to your local Fall River solar panel installation expert is a great first step.