Washington DC offers rebates for clean energy

If you're a Washington D.C. resident, businesses, or nonprofit in the market to install solar panels you might just be shopping at the right time. The Green Energy DC Renewable Energy Incentive Program launched this week gives the people of D.C. up to $33,000 in rebates to install solar panels to power their buildings. The interesting part of the D.C. Renewable Energy Incentive Program (REIP) is that it provides rebates for a portfolio of clean energy technologies including photovoltaics, geothermal, solar thermal air and water heating, biomass and methane-capture.

The REIP, photovoltaic (solar panels) incentives are on a tiered scale based on the solar electric system rating in DC kilowatt output:

• $3 per watt for each of the first 3,000 watts installed
  
• $2 per watt for the next 7,000 watts installed
  
• $1 per watt for the next 10,000 watts installed

The D.C. rebate in addition to the federal tax credit is going to push clean energy system installations into the mainstream in Washington D.C. This is a very generous rebate in my opinion since it bases the amount of money you will receive back from incentive program on DC (direct current) watts versus what the system will produce for you on the AC (Alternating Current) side. Here in California the rebate programs are based on CEC (California energy Commission)-AC, so if you crunch the numbers Californians receive a smaller rebate per DC watt installed then what the D.C. Renewable Energy Incenitve Program offers. Anyways if your in Washington D.C. this is a good time to pick up a clean energy system.