2024 Solar Incentives Guide for Bristol, RI - Tax Credits & Rebates
In this guide, we'll cover the latest solar incentives and rebates available in Bristol.
You'll learn about:
- Local & State Solar Incentives
- Federal Tax Credits (Updated for 2024 and beyond)
- Ways to optimize your solar investment
Solar installers are experts in maximizing your solar tax credits and rebates.
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What Solar Tax Credits, Incentives, and Rebates are Available in Bristol?
Local Option - Property Tax Exemption for Renewable Energy Systems
Renewable Energy Products Sales and Use Tax Exemption
Property Tax Exemption for Renewable Energy Equipment
Small Scale Solar Grants (Commerce RI)
Direct Ownership: $1.05/W
Third Party Ownership: $0.70/W
Solar Domestic Hot Water Heating
Direct Ownership: 25% of project contract price
Third Party Ownership: 10% of total contract price
Federal Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credit
Source: https://www.dsireusa.org/
Solar incentives are designed to mitigate the cost of installing a solar panel system on your home. These financial incentives are intended to encourage more homeowners to switch their home over to renewable energy. These incentives might include cash back, upfront discounts or credit towards your monthly utility bill. Some incentives are provided by the federal government, some by the state of Rhode Island and some by your specific utility company, county or municipality. Some solar incentives you might qualify for are:
- Tax Exemptions: Your solar system may qualify for exemptions on both sales and property tax. Sales tax exemptions are applied at the time of purchase. Property tax exemptions allow you to ignore the value added by your solar panels when you are calculating property taxes on your home.
- Net Metering: You may be able to sign a net metering agreement with your Bristol utility company. This agreement may apply to all or a percentage of the excess electricity your solar panels generate. They will then deduct this value from your utility bill each month.
- Tax Credits: Different from tax deductions, tax credits are dollar-for-dollar reductions in the amount of income tax that you owe the federal government.
- Rebates: Rebates, or cash back after a purchase, are typically given before any solar tax credits are calculated. Solar rebates might be provided by your local utility company, by your county or by your state.
Best National Provider
SunPower
- Most efficient panels on the market
- National coverage
- Cradle to Cradle sustainability certification
- Great warranty coverage
- Expensive
- Customer service varies by local dealer
Best for Leasing
Sunrun
- Expansive service area
- Many financing options
- Some reported issues with customer service
- Some reported issues with door-to-door sales
Best Social Impact
Palmetto Solar
- Expansive service area
- Makes charitable contributions
- Certified B Corp
- No leases or PPAs
- Quality of installation may vary by location
Federal Solar Incentives
When thinking about solar incentives, federal incentives might be the first thing that comes to mind. It's likely that you've heard of the Federal Solar Investment Tax Credit, or ITC. This is a tax credit equal to a specified percentage of the money you spend installing solar panels.
The ITC can be applied to solar panels installed after January 1, 2006, on a primary or secondary residence in the United States that you own. Originally, the tax credit was for 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 claim amount.
To best understand how the ITC could apply to your situation, speak to your local Bristol solar panel installer and request more information.
In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act made revisions to the ITC, now referred to as the Clean Energy Credit. The new Clean Energy Credit extends until 2035. Homeowners can now receive a 30% credit for solar systems that began installation after January 1, 2022, and are completed by the end of 2032. This new credit will then be decreased by a few percentage points every year until it expires. Starting in 2023, the program 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 Bristol solar panel installer 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 may be offered at the local or state level. Similar to federal incentives, these might include rebates, tax credits and more. Incentives might be given by your county or municipality, or by the state of Rhode Island. Some incentives may be available for only a limited time, while others are ongoing.
Next Steps for Installing Solar in Bristol
You can receive solar incentives from the federal government and the Rhode Island government, as well as from your local utility company. The growing availability of solar initiatives in the past 15 years has helped increase solar adoption nationwide. Call your local solar panel installation company today to find out more information and to save the most money possible on a solar system for your Bristol home.
EcoWatch's Bristol, RI Solar Incentives FAQs
What are some environmental benefits of installing solar panels on my home?
Solar energy is renewable — by changing where you get your energy, you help reduce the strain on our planet's resources. A solar system can also reduce your home's CO2 emissions by 200 pounds a year, or roughly 4,000 pounds over 20 years.
I want to switch my appliances out for ones that are more energy-efficient. Are there any credits I can get?
Under the new Inflation Reduction Act, there are a variety of new financial incentives to encourage you to make eco-friendly improvements to your home. More details on these incentives, including information about incentives for purchasing new appliances, can be found here.
Can I qualify for incentives both towards the initial cost of solar panels, and later as reimbursement?
The order your incentives will be applied in may vary depending on which incentives you are claiming but usually yes, you can claim multiple types of incentives for your solar project. Get in touch with your solar installer or a local tax professional to confirm you are claiming all the incentives you qualify for and applying them in the correct order.
Can I receive any incentives when I add solar panels to a rental property, vacation home or commercial property?
While we recommend getting in touch with your local solar installer and/or tax professional to better understand what solar incentives apply to you, many will apply to a second home, provided that it is in the United States and owned by you. There may be additional incentives available for commercial properties specifically, depending on the specifics.
Our goal is to reach as many people as we can with sensible solutions like solar energy. Our team of full-time local researchers collects solar price and installation data for every city in America then compiles it to create these digestible city guides. If you want to read our solar expert's opinion on the top solar companies featured here, follow this link.
Solar incentive research was conducted by Melissa Smith and Karsten Neumeister. Local data analysis was conducted by James Savino. See something we missed or could do better? Email the editor.