2024 Solar Incentives Guide for Youngstown, OH - Tax Credits & Rebates

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

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

Solar incentives are designed to mitigate the cost of installing a solar panel system on your home. This category of financial incentives is intended to encourage more people to make the switch to renewable energy. You might be eligible for several 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 Ohio government and others from the federal government. You might qualify for any of the following types of solar incentives:

• 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: Your solar panel system could qualify for both sales tax and property tax exemptions. Sales tax exemptions come into effect at the time of purchase. Property tax exemptions let you exclude the value added by your solar panels when calculating property taxes on your home.
• Net Metering: Make sure you speak to your Youngstown utility company about signing a net metering contract. This allows you to get a credit towards your utility bill every month for the value of excess energy generated by your solar panels. You could receive either a dollar-for-dollar credit or a percentage of the value.
• Rebates: Solar rebates might be offered by your local utility company, or by your county or state. These rebates work as cash back that is applied after you pay for a solar system and before tax credits are calculated.
• Solar Renewable Energy Certificate (SREC): Generally, solar systems that produce more than a specified (usually small) amount of electricity will qualify for SRECs or other similar performance-based incentives. SRECs and similar incentives are typically given at the state level. You can sell SRECs to your utility company or another buyer, and this is usually considered part of your taxable income.

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Federal Solar Incentives

When you think about solar incentives, you likely think of federal incentives first. An incentive that most people are probably familiar with is the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC). This is a tax credit for a predetermined percentage of your solar system's cost.

The ITC applies to solar panels installed on your primary or secondary residence in the United States. The solar panels must have been installed on a property you own after January 1, 2006, for you to claim the credit. Originally, the ITC covered 30% of all system costs (panels, accessories, equipment and labor), although the amount has fluctuated slightly over the last few years between 26-30%. The amount you qualify for will depend on when your solar system was installed. There is no cap on the claim amount.

To better understand exactly how much the ITC could save you, contact your local Youngstown solar panel installer.

In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act laid out new provisions for the ITC, now dubbed the Clean Energy Credit. Homeowners can now receive a credit equal to 30% of the total costs of solar system installation for projects that began after January 1, 2022, and will be finished by the end of 2032. The percentage will then begin to decrease yearly until the Clean Energy Credit expires in 2035. The expansion also makes it easier to get credit for energy storage systems, beginning in 2023.

Click here to learn more about the new Inflation Reduction Act. To best understand how the new Clean Energy Credit applies to you, speak with your local Youngstown solar installation company.

State & Local Solar Incentives

Tax credits, rebates and more can be claimed at multiple levels. On top of federal solar incentives, there are often state and local ones as well. Incentives might be provided by the state of Ohio, or by your county or municipality. Certain incentives might only be available for a limited time, while others are ongoing.

Next Steps for Installing Solar in Youngstown

You can qualify for solar incentives from the Ohio government and the federal government, as well as from your local utility company. This increase in availability of solar initiatives in the past 15 years has helped increase solar adoption nationwide. We recommend talking to your local Youngstown solar installer to learn more about these incentives and to be sure that you're getting the largest number possible for your solar panels.