This week President-elect Joe Biden introduced key officials and cabinet members. Among those members was the man tasked with leading the way to address and combat climate change, John Kerry. The selection of John Kerry marks a significant refocusing on climate change. President-elect Joe Biden emphasizes the importance of reducing emissions, rejoining the Paris Agreement, investing in renewable energy, and incentivizing the private sectors. The United States can expect more growth in solar; thus, Florida can expect more growth too.
Texas Lands Largest Solar Site
This week, Texas announced a large solar project. The single largest solar project in the U.S. will be built in North-East, Texas. Invenergy, a Chicago-based company, invested more than a billion dollars in the project. Alexandra Kelley for TheHill reported that “The project is also expected to create about 600 jobs during the 36-month construction time, as well as bring more than $250 million in landowner payments and $200 million in property tax.” The increase in jobs and economic revenue will amass 1.5 GW of total solar capacity. Large-scale solar sites are popping up across the U.S., and it is only a matter of time before another project surpasses it as the largest.
Florida Solar
Florida may not have the largest solar site in the United States, but they have enough solar capacity to rank third nationally. The SEIA factsheet continues that “5,577.67 MW have been installed in Florida, with over 66,000 installations,” which is enough to power “670,000+ homes.” The percentage of electricity that Florida consumes off solar is “2.34%.” Solar jobs in Florida amount to over “12,000, which are employed by over 400 solar companies.” SEIA shared that “prices have fallen 38% over the last five years, with a growth projection and ranking of 8,632 MW over the next five years (ranks 3rd), respectively..” The fact sheet can be found here.
Florida SolarTogether
Florida is increasing its investment in solar. Florida Power and Light (FPL) has created a program to increase Florida residents’ incentives and accessibility. SolarTogether creates opportunities for solar investment in large scale installations. In March, the Florida Public Service Committee agreed to allow FPL to break ground on its $1.8 billion project. FPL hopes to add 1,490 megawatts of solar capacity. The program is a significant win for solar advocacy groups, and the program is expected to increase solar-power accessibility in Florida drastically. An increase in accessibility will lower the price of solar. Companies and homeowners alike are gaining ground in installing solar panels. Even during a pandemic, solar installations have found a way to continue.
Florida’s Incentives
You can save money on your Florida residential solar installation by taking advantage of the following five incentives:
- The Federal Solar Tax Credit is a 26%, dollar for dollar, federal tax cut that equals 26% of your total solar investment. Any solar investment can reduce your federal taxes by 26% from homeowners to businesses, putting that money back in your pocket. Don’t wait. It drops to 22% on January 1st, 2021.
- Florida Property Tax Exclusion for Residential Renewable Energy Property– Florida will abate the increased tax that comes with the inevitable increase in property value. This Law means your property taxes won’t rise because you’ve upgraded to Solar Energy. This incentive doesn’t expire until December 2037.
- Florida Solar and CHP Sales Tax Exemption– In 1997, Florida had enacted the Solar Sales Tax Exemption. Residential households could see savings of up to 6% by converting to Solar. The Solar Sales Tax Exemption is permanent. Floridians who have taken advantage of this exemption would put up 6% of their state’s taxes. Residents in Florida have every opportunity to take advantage of the tax credits, exemptions, and incentives of switching to Solar Energy.
- Net Metering Program- Net metering is as much a process as it is an incentive. It is an exchange of energy for credits with an electrical grid operated by a Utility company. The credits are based on the number of kilowatt-hours produced by your solar system, which can then be used later. Commonly, this takes place when the household’s energy consumption exceeds the solar energy that the home produced. All major utilities in Florida have a Net Metering program.
Contact Us
To learn more, you can check out our other blogs here. For a free quote, you can see us here. Region Solar defines itself as “a full-service solar partner for residential and commercial solar installations. We are committed to providing our customers with the best service and highest quality equipment for all our solar installations. Region Solar is a female-owned, family-run business that has been serving the Sarasota area since 2007. Let us know how we can help you save on your monthly utility bills.”
Sources
“Energy My Way: SolarTogether.” FPL, www.fpl.com/energy-my-way/solar/solartogether-res.html.
DSIRE, programs.dsireusa.org/system/program/detail/5426.
EnergySage, www.energysage.com/local-data/solar-rebates-incentives/fl/.
https://thehill.com/changing-america/sustainability/energy/527402-largest-solar-project-in-us-history-announced
https://regionsolar.co/blog/
https://www.seia.org/sites/default/files/2020-09/Florida.pdf
Sunrun. “Florida Solar Incentives: Florida Solar Rebates and Tax Credits.” Sunrun, Sunrun, 13 Oct. 2020, www.sunrun.com/solar-by-state/fl/florida-solar-incentives-rebates-tax-credits.
“Sunshine State Sheds Light On How To Incentivize Solar Energy.” Region Solar, 3 Sept. 2020, regionsolar.co/sunshine-state-sheds-light-on-how-to-incentivize-solar-energy/.
https://www.timesrecordnews.com/story/news/local/2020/11/24/america-largest-solar-energy-project-construction-northeast-texas/6341556002/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/11/24/energy-202-biden-sends-signal-he-is-serious-about-climate-change-with-john-kerry-pick/
“What Is NEM?” Region Solar, 30 Aug. 2020, regionsolar.co/what-is-nem/.
