Rebates

Corporate Federal Tax Credit or Grant

Solar. The credit is equal to 30% of expenditures, with no maximum credit limit stated. Eligible solar energy property includes equipment that uses solar energy to generate electricity, to heat or cool (or provide hot water for use in) a structure, or to provide solar process heat. (Passive solar systems and solar pool-heating systems are not eligible.) Hybrid solar lighting systems are those that use solar energy to illuminate the inside of a structure using fiber-optic distributed sunlight. 

Under the just passed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act the tax credit can now be issued as a grant – a direct payment.

Corporate Bonus Depreciation

Under the federal Modified Accelerated Cost-Recovery System (MACRS), businesses may recover investments in certain property through depreciation deductions. The MACRS establishes a set of class lives for various types of property, ranging from three to 50 years, over which the property may be depreciated. A number of renewable energy technologies are classified as five-year property (26 USC § 168(e)(3)(B)(vi)) under the MACRS, which refers to 26 USC § 48(a)(3)(A), often known as the energy investment tax credit or ITC to define eligible property. Such property currently includes:

If property meets these requirements, the owner is entitled to deduct 50% of the adjusted basis of the property in 2008 and 2009. The remaining 50% of the adjusted basis of the property is depreciated over the ordinary depreciation schedule. The bonus depreciation rules do not override the depreciation limit applicable to projects qualifying for the federal business energy tax credit. Before calculating depreciation for such a project, including any bonus depreciation, the adjusted basis of the project must be reduced by one-half of the amount of the energy credit for which the project qualifies. 

Illinois Solar Energy Rebate Program

The Renewable Energy Resources Program (RERP) promotes the development of renewable energy in Illinois. This program is funded by the Renewable Energy Resources Trust Fund -- the state's public benefits fund -- and is administered by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO).  
 
Under new program guidelines issued in November 2007, rebates are available for solar-energy systems installed in Illinois after January 1, 2008. The DCEO offers rebates of up to 30% of an individual system's cost, with a maximum individual award of $10,000. The application deadline for the current funding cycle is May 1, 2009.