2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Bath, MI - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are meant to encourage people to switch to renewable energy by providing financial incentives meant to lower the burden of solar panel installation and use. Solar incentives might include cash back, upfront discounts or monthly credits towards your utility bill. Some incentives are offered by the federal government, some by the Michigan government and some by your utility company, county or municipality. Categories of solar incentives include:

• Net Metering: Don't forget to speak with your Bath utility company about signing a net metering contract. This allows you to receive credit towards your monthly utility bill for the value of excess energy your solar panels generate. You might receive either a dollar-for-dollar credit or a percentage of the value.
• Rebates: A solar 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 discount that rebates offer is normally applied to the price of solar panels before calculating tax credits.
• Tax Credits: Tax credits decrease, dollar-for-dollar, the total amount of tax you owe the government. Tax credits are different from tax deductions.
• Tax Exemptions: These can come in the form of property tax exemptions, which would allow you to ignore the value of your solar system when paying taxes on your house. You may also qualify for an exemption on sales tax at the time of purchase.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal incentives are the kind of incentives that you are most likely to have some familiarity with. The solar incentive that you're most familiar with is probably the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which provides a credit on your taxes equal to a certain percentage of the cost of your solar system.

The ITC can be applied to solar systems installed after January 1, 2006 on a primary or secondary residence that you own in the United States. Initially, the credit applied to 30% of the total cost — for panels, equipment, labor and accessories — although it may range from 26-30%, depending on the installation date of your solar system. There is no cap on the amount you can claim.

To best understand how the ITC could apply to your situation, reach out to your local Bath solar panel installation expert and ask for more information.

The ITC was both renewed and expanded by the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022. It's also now called the Clean Energy Credit. The Clean Energy Credit runs until 2035. Your solar installation project undertaken between 2022 and 2032 may qualify for a 30% tax credit; the amount will then decrease slightly each year until the current program ends. The program expansion also makes claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before, beginning in 2023.

More information about the new Inflation Reduction Act can be found here. Your local Bath solar panel installation experts can answer any questions you have and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit may apply to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Tax credits, rebates and more can be provided at multiple levels. Along with federal solar incentives, there are often state and local ones as well. The incentives — which might be provided by the state of Michigan, 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 Bath

There are a number of different solar incentives: those provided by local utility companies, those provided by the federal government and those provided by the Michigan government, to name a few. The use of solar energy has grown tremendously in the last 15 years, partially thanks to these incentives. When you're ready to make the switch to solar energy, calling your local Bath solar panel installation expert is an excellent place to start.