tax credits and incentives

Residential and Small Scale

• Use Form and Instructions 5695 (irs.gov)
  A thirty percent federal tax credit is available for the purchase and installation of solar photovoltaic, solar water heater, geothermal heat pumps and residential small wind systems. There is no cap on the dollar amount of these credits. Theses credits expire after 2016.

• The thirty percent credit is calculated as follows:
  

  (Cost of system + Cost of Installation) * 30% = Amount of credit available to reduce Federal Income Tax Due

• Fuel Cells - A minimum of one-half kilowatt system must be installed to take advantage of this federal income tax credit. The credit is the lesser of $500 per ½-kilowatt or 30% of the system cost.

Commercial and Industrial

Financial incentives of larger installations and those by the commercial and industrial sectors include state property tax exemptions, business tax credits and payroll tax credits.

For resources on these and other financial incentives (based on resource used, size and location), please contact the Michigan Economic Development Corporation at Michigan.org or NextEnergy Authority at NextEnergy.org.