Bringing Clean Energy to New York Since 2012
While most states have support programs for rooftop solar energy systems, New Yorkers are extra fortunate to have some of the most abundant solar incentives in the country. Because of these rebates and incentives, the Big Apple is an ideal state for homeowners who want to save on their monthly energy bills.
Solar Benefits in New York
- No out-of-pocket costs.
- 20+ year financing terms.
- Generous tax incentives.
Solar Rebates & Incentives
The Empire State is known for its famous sites, historic neighborhoods and world-famous museums. As solar continues to expand in the state, New York homeowners can benefit from some of the robust incentive programs available:
Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth & Community Benefit Act
With the goal of ensuring the enormous pipeline of large-scale renewable energy projects is quickly and responsibly permitted and to bolster New York's economy, the recently passed Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act will benefit many of the state's business owners and organizations. The act help speed up the siting and construction of ongoing and future clean energy projects (including commercial solar projects) and deliver significant benefits to our local communities.
The Solar Electric Generating Systems Tax Abatement Program
New York's Solar Electric Generating Systems Tax Abatement provides business and homeowners with a four-year tax abatement for the construction or installation of a solar electric generating system. In alignment with the city's long-term sustainability plan, known as PlaNYC, it provides a tax abatement of 5% of eligible expenditures for four years or the building's annual tax liability (whichever is less).
The Megawatt Block Incentive Structure
The state’s Megawatt Block Incentive is a generous incentive available to residents and business owners under New York’s progressive NY-Sun Initiative. The program provides a dollars-per-watt ($/W) rebate for both commercial and residential solar energy systems installed. Your subsidy size is determined based on how much solar energy is already being generated in your area, with some areas receiving as high as $1/W.
Net Metering
As an important policy that ensures you’re paid a fair price for the excess solar electricity your system sends to the grid, net metering credits you for that extra solar power your home produces. Those credits accrue and are stored in a “credit bank” that you can utilize when your system doesn’t produce enough to offset your electricity bill (usually during the winter months, on cloudy days, etc).
Here are the top net metering programs available in New York:
New York’s Solar Equipment Tax Credit
The New York solar tax credit can lower your state tax payments by up to $5,000 or 25% off the total amount spent on your solar energy system (whichever is lower). The advantages of this tax credit are twofold: first, it’s not required that you purchase your solar energy system to claim the credit (so you can lease or utilize a PPA) and second, if your tax liability isn’t big enough to claim the entire credit after the first year, it can roll over into the following year.
NY-Sun Initiative
NY-Sun is an umbrella program for many of the solar industry’s support mechanisms in New York, including the Megawatt Block Incentive Structure. In conjunction with NYPA, NY-Sun is the backbone of the Community Solar and K-Solar programs.
Reforming the Energy Vision (REV)
The ultimate goal of the REV Initiative is to reinvent the state’s energy systems with a primary focus on distributed energy technologies (like rooftop solar panels and home battery storage). While it doesn’t directly subsidize rooftop solar power, it aims to provide an equal playing field for distributed energy versus centralized power plants (coal, gas and nuclear) through market reforms.
Federal Solar Tax Credit
The Investment Tax Credit (ITC) can reduce the cost of your photovoltaic (PV) system by 26%. This credit only applies to customers who purchase their system with cash or a solar loan and you must have enough income in order for the tax credit to be significant.
Ready to start saving on Day 1?
Based on your local rebate and incentives available to you, we’ll create a customized quote for your home, business or organization to show how much you’ll save from the start and over time.