Solar/Wind Tax Breaks in NY Without “Certified” Installers

On April 10, 2008 in General Information

I was griping before about having to have some “certified” person install systems to get a tax break. Here is something I just ran across in my travels of dsireusa.org:

Solar, Wind & Biomass Energy Systems Exemption

Here are the requirements:

“ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

1. Ownership Requirements: None.
2. Property Location Requirements: None.
3. Property Use Requirements: Property must contain a solar or wind energy system, an arrangement of solar or wind energy equipment designed to provide heating, cooling, hot water, or mechanical, chemical, or electrical energy by the collection of solar or wind energy and its conversion, storage, protection, and distribution. Solar or wind energy equipment qualifying the property for exemption includes collectors, controls, energy storage devices, heat pumps and pumps, heat exchangers, windmills, and other materials, hardware, or equipment necessary to the process by which solar radiation or wind is collected, converted into another form of energy, stored, protected from unnecessary dissipation, and distributed. It does not include pipes, controls, insulation, heat pumps, or other equipment that is part of the normal heating, cooling, or insulation system of a building. It does include insulated glazing or insulation to the extent that such materials exceed the energy efficiency standards required by law.Alternatively, the property must contain a farm waste energy system, an arrangement of farm waste electrical generating equipment necessary to the process of producing, collecting, storing, cleaning, and converting agricultural waste biogas into forms of energy such as thermal, electrical, mechanical or chemical and by which the biogas and converted energy are distributed on-site. It does not include pipes, controls, insulation, or other equipment that are part of the normal heating, cooling or insulation system of a building. Farm waste electric generating equipment includes equipment that generates electrical energy from biogas produced by the anaerobic digestion of agricultural waste, such as livestock manure, farming waste and food processing wastes with a rated capacity of not more than 400 kilowatts that is: 1) manufactured, installed and operated in accordance with applicable government and industry standards, 2) connected to the electric system and operated in conjunction with an electric corporation’s transmission and distribution facilities, 3) operated in compliance with the provisions of Section 66-j of the Public Service Law, 4) fueled at a minimum of 90 percent annually by biogas produced from the anaerobic digestion of agricultural waste such as livestock manure materials, crop residues and food processing wastes, and 5) fueled by biogas generated by anaerobic digestion with at least 75 percent by weight of its feedstock being livestock manure materials annually.
4. Certification by State or Local Government: None required.
5. Required Construction Start Date or Other Time Requirement:  Solar, wind, or farm waste energy system must be (a) in existence or constructed prior to July 1, 1988, or (b) constructed after January 1, 1991 and before January 1, 2011.“

Sounds good to me, especially considering the example calculation they give:

a.	Total cost of solar energy system:	$10,000
b.	Incremental cost of system:	$4,000
c.	Ratio of incremental cost to total cost [(b) divided by (a)]:	40%
d.	Increase in assessed value of property attributable to addition of solar energy system:	$6,000
e.	Assessed value exempt due to addition of system [(d) times (c)]:	$2,400

Here is a whole list of alternative energy incentives for New York and Federal incentives. They have a map where you can click on your state to see benefits available to you.

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