2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Marblehead, MA - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are intended to encourage people to make the switch to renewable energy by offering incentives meant to lower the financial burden of solar panel installation and use. You may qualify for several types of incentives, such as discounts, cash back or monthly utility bill credits, depending on your situation. Certain incentives come from your specific utility company, county or municipality, some from the Massachusetts government and others from the federal government. Some broad categories of solar incentives include:

• Net Metering: Net metering factors in after your solar panels are up and running. If you've signed a net metering agreement with your Marblehead utility company, the company will subtract the value of the excess energy produced by your solar system from your monthly utility bill. In some places, this is a dollar-for-dollar credit, while in other places you may be refunded a percentage of the value.
• Tax Exemptions: Tax exemptions can come in two forms. First, there is sales tax exemption, applied when you purchase solar panels. The second is property tax exemption. This allows you to ignore the added value of your solar system when calculating property tax for your home.
• Rebates: A rebate is a partial refund after the purchase of your solar system. Rebates could be offered by your local utility company, your county or your state. The rebates are usually applied before calculating tax credits.
• Tax Credits: Tax credits lower, dollar-for-dollar, how much income tax you owe the government. These differ from tax deductions.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and similar performance-based incentives are typically handled at the state level. Once your solar panel system meets a certain threshold (generally a small amount of energy production), you are eligible to receive SRECs that can be sold to your utility company or other buyers. The money you receive is generally considered part of your taxable income.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal solar incentives are likely the first thing that you think of when thinking about solar incentives. 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 predetermined percentage of the cost of your solar system.

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

Reaching out to your local Marblehead solar panel installation expert is the best way to understand how the ITC could apply to you.

In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act made revisions to the ITC, now referred to as the Clean Energy Credit. The new Clean Energy Credit now runs until 2035. Homeowners can now receive a 30% credit for solar systems installed between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2032. This credit will then decrease annually until its expiration. The expansion to the program also makes claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before, starting in 2023.

More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. Your local Marblehead solar panel company can answer any questions you have and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit applies to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

In addition to federal solar incentives, there are often also state ones. Rebates, tax credits and more may be available at a more local level. Some incentives are ongoing, while others are offered for only a limited time. These local incentives could come from the Massachusetts government, or from your specific county or municipality.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Marblehead

There are a number of different solar incentives: those offered by local utility companies, those offered by the federal government and those offered by the Massachusetts government, to name a few. The use of solar energy has grown tremendously in the last 15 years, partially due to these incentives. Your local Marblehead solar panel installation company can provide you with more details about which incentives you may qualify for, and get you feeling good about making the change to renewable energy today.