2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Hickory, NC - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives help mitigate the cost of installing solar panels on your home. These financial incentives are in place to encourage more people to convert their home partially or fully to renewable energy. You may be eligible for various types of incentives, including cash back, discounts or credit towards your monthly utility bill, depending on your situation. Some incentives come from your specific utility company, county or municipality, some from the state of North Carolina and others from the federal government. Some broad categories of solar incentives include:

• Net Metering: You can sign a net metering agreement with your Hickory utility company that will apply to all or a percentage of the excess electricity that is generated by your solar panels. Your utility company will then deduct this value from your utility bill each month.
• Tax Credits: Tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions that lower the amount of income tax you owe the government. (A tax credit is different from a tax deduction.)
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs are credits that can be sold to your utility company (or other buyers) for cash that normally counts as part of your taxable income. In most cases, there is a small threshold of energy production to meet before your solar system is eligible for SRECs or other performance-based incentives. SRECs and similar incentives are typically handled by your state government.
• Rebates: Rebates, or partial refunds after a purchase, are normally applied prior to any solar tax credits being calculated. Rebates may be provided by your local utility company, by your county or by your state.
• Tax Exemptions: Tax exemptions can come in two forms. The first is sales tax exemption, applied at the time you purchase your solar panels. The second is property tax exemption, which allows you to exclude the added value of your solar system when calculating property tax for your home.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal solar incentives are probably the first thing that comes to mind when you think 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 can be applied to solar panels installed on your primary or secondary residence in the United States. The solar panels have to have been installed on a property you own after January 1, 2006 for you to claim the credit. The ITC originally paid out 30% of all system costs (panels, equipment, labor and accessories), although this amount has fluctuated slightly over the 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 better understand how the ITC will apply to you, get in touch with your local Hickory solar panel installation expert and request more information.

In August 2022, the ITC (now called the Clean Energy Credit) was bolstered by the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act. The Clean Energy Credit re-raises the credit up to 30% for solar installations undertaken between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2032. After this, the percentage will be reduced slightly each year until the program expires in 2035. The expansion to the program also makes credits for energy storage systems even easier to claim, beginning in 2023.

Click here to learn more about the new Inflation Reduction Act. Your local Hickory solar panel installation experts can answer your questions and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit may apply to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Some solar incentives may be provided by state and local governments. As with federal incentives, these can include rebates, tax credits and more. The incentives — which may be handled by the state of North Carolina, or by your county or municipality — might be offered on an ongoing basis, or for only a limited time.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Hickory

You can receive solar incentives from the North Carolina government and the federal government, as well as from your local utility company. The increased availability of solar initiatives over the last 15 years has helped increase nationwide solar energy use enormously. Speaking with your local Hickory solar panel installation company is the best first step towards getting the most money possible when you switch to solar energy.