2025 Solar Incentives Guide for Galion, OH - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

The phrase "solar incentives" covers a wide range of financial incentives designed to make installing and using solar panels more affordable. This is done to encourage people to switch to renewable energy. Incentives might include things like discounts, cash back or monthly utility bill credits. Some incentives are offered federally, while others are handled by the state of Ohio or by your utility company, county or municipality. Some broad categories of solar incentives include:

• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): In general, solar systems that produce more than a predetermined (generally small) amount of electricity qualify for SRECs or other performance-based incentives. SRECs and performance-based incentives in general are typically given by your state government. You can sell SRECs to your utility company or another buyer, and the money you receive is normally considered part of your taxable income.
• Net Metering: Make sure you speak with your Galion utility company about signing a net metering agreement. This allows you to get a 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.
• 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.)
• Rebates: A solar rebate is a partial refund after the purchase of your solar panels. Rebates might be offered by your local utility company, your state or your county. The discount that rebates offer is normally applied to the price of solar panels before calculating tax credits.
• Tax Exemptions: These might come in the form of property tax exemptions, which let you exclude the value added by your solar panels when calculating the taxes you pay on your home. You could also look for exemptions on sales tax at the time of purchase.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal incentives are the type of incentives that you are most likely to have heard of. The Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC, is the most commonly known federal solar incentive. The ITC allows you to claim a tax credit for a predetermined percentage of the cost of your solar system.

The ITC applies to the total cost of installing a solar system, including the panels themselves as well as accessories, labor and equipment. You can claim this credit for panels installed after January 1, 2006, on a primary or secondary residence located in the United States that you own. From its original value of 30% of the total cost, the credit has fluctuated slightly between 26-30%, and you may qualify for varying percentages depending on when your project was completed. There is no maximum claim amount.

To know exactly how much the ITC could save you, get in touch with your local Galion solar panel installation expert.

The ITC was renewed and increased in scope after the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in August 2022. It's also now called the Clean Energy Credit. The Clean Energy Credit bolsters the current credit, increasing it up to 30% for solar installation projects started after January 1, 2022, and completed by the end of 2032. At this point, the percentage will be reduced slightly each year until the end of the program in 2035. Starting in 2023, the expansion to the program will also make claiming credit for energy storage systems easier than ever before.

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

State & Local Solar Incentives

Some solar incentives are often also provided at the state and local level. Similar to federal incentives, these can include tax credits, rebates and more. Incentives might be provided by the state of Ohio, or by your county or municipality. Some incentives might only be available for a limited time, while others are ongoing.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Galion

Solar incentives can be offered by the Ohio government, the federal government or your local utility company. The growing number of available solar incentives has contributed to a large increase in solar energy use in the last 15 years. Speak with your local solar panel installation expert today to discover more about the various programs and to save the most money possible on solar panels for your Galion home.