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

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

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

The phrase "solar incentives" generally refers to financial incentives designed to encourage people to use renewable energy by making installing and using solar panels more affordable. Solar incentives might include cash back, upfront discounts or monthly credits towards your utility bill. Some incentives are given by the federal government, some by the state of North Carolina and some by your utility company, county or municipality. Categories of solar incentives include:

• Rebates: A solar rebate is a partial refund credited to your account after you've paid for your solar system. Rebates might 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 tax credits are calculated.
• 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.)
• Tax Exemptions: Sales tax exemptions are effective at the time of purchase for your solar panels. Property tax exemptions let you exclude the added value of your solar system when calculating the amount of property tax you need to pay on your home.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs and similar performance-based incentives might be available to you if your solar system produces more than a specified (usually small) amount of electricity. These types of incentives are typically handled by the state government. You can sell SRECs to your utility company or other buyers, and the money you receive in return is generally considered part of your taxable income.
• Net Metering: Net metering factors in once your solar panels are up and running. If you've signed a net metering agreement with your Statesville utility company, they will subtract the value of the excess energy your solar system produces from your utility bill each month. In some locations, this is a dollar-for-dollar credit, while in other areas you might receive a refund equivalent to a percentage of the value.

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 likely to have heard of is 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 applies to the value of a solar system installed on your primary or secondary residence in the United States. The solar system has to have been installed after January 1, 2006 on a property you own for you to claim the credit. The ITC originally paid out 30% of all system installation costs (panels, labor, accessories and equipment), 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.

Wondering how the ITC applies to your specific situation? Get in touch with your local Statesville solar panel installation expert to get more information.

In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act made revisions to the ITC, now called the Clean Energy Credit. The Clean Energy Credit lasts until 2035. Your solar installation project undertaken between 2022 and 2032 may qualify for a 30% tax credit; the amount will decrease slightly on a yearly basis until the current program ends. Starting in 2023, the expansion will also make claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before.

Click here to learn more about the new Inflation Reduction Act. Your local Statesville solar panel company can answer your questions and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit applies to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Tax credits, rebates and more might be claimed at multiple levels. On top of federal solar incentives, there are often state and local ones as well. These incentives — which might be provided by the state of North Carolina, or by your county or municipality — might be offered for only a limited time, or on an ongoing basis.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Statesville

You can qualify for solar incentives from the federal government and the North Carolina government, as well as from your local utility company. This increase in availability of solar initiatives in the past 15 years has helped greatly increase nationwide adoption of solar energy. Speak with your local solar panel installation expert today to discover more about the various programs and to save as much money as possible on a solar system for your Statesville home.