2023 Solar Incentives Guide for Wilmington, OH - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are designed to encourage homeowners to switch to renewable energy by providing incentives meant to lower the financial burden of solar panel installation and use. Different types of incentives, such as cash back, discounts or monthly utility bill credits, may be available to you. Certain incentives may be offered by the Ohio government, by your utility company or by county or municipality, while other incentives are federal. Categories of solar incentives include:

• Tax Exemptions: Your solar system could qualify for exemptions on both sales and property tax. Sales tax exemptions are effective at the time of purchase. Property tax exemptions allow you to exclude the value added by your solar panels when you are calculating property taxes on your home.
• Rebates: A rebate is a partial refund credited to your account after you've paid for your solar system. These might be offered by your local utility company, your county or your state. The rebates are usually applied before tax credits are calculated.
• Tax Credits: Tax credits decrease, dollar-for-dollar, the amount of income tax you owe the government. Tax credits differ from tax deductions.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): SRECs are credits that can be sold to your utility company (or other buyers) for money that typically becomes part of your taxable income. Generally, a certain (small) threshold of energy production must be met before your solar system is eligible for SRECs or similar performance-based incentives. Incentives like these are typically handled at the state level.
• Net Metering: You can sign a net metering contract with your Wilmington utility company. This agreement may apply to all or a percentage of the excess electricity your solar panels generate. They will then subtract this value from your utility bill each month.

Federal Solar Incentives

Federal incentives are the type of incentives that you are most likely to have heard of. It's likely that you've heard of the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC. This is a tax credit that reduces your taxes by a predetermined percentage of the money you spend on your solar system.

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

To more fully understand how the ITC may apply to you, speak to your local Wilmington solar panel installation expert and request more information.

In August 2022, the ITC (now called the Clean Energy Credit) was bolstered by the passing 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. At this point, the percentage will be reduced slightly each year until the end of the program in 2035. Starting in 2023, the expansion 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 Wilmington solar panel installation experts can answer any questions you have and explain how the new Clean Energy Credit applies to you.

State & Local Solar Incentives

There are more than just federal solar incentives; rebates, tax credits and more may be offered at the state and local level. These incentives might be handled by the Ohio government, or by your county or municipality. Some are ongoing, while others are available for a limited time.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Wilmington

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 Ohio government, to name a few. Solar energy utilization has increased tremendously in the last 15 years, partially due to these incentives. When you're ready to make the switch to solar energy, calling your local Wilmington solar panel installation expert is a great first step.