2009 Tax Credits

On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed a stimulus bill (The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) that made some significant changes to the energy efficiency tax credits. The highlights are:
• The tax credits that were previously effective for 2009, have been extended to 2010 as well.
• The tax credit has been raised from 10% to 30%.
• The tax credits that were for a specific dollar amount (ex $300 for a CAC), have been converted to 30% of
the cost.
• The maximum credit has been raised from $500 to $1500 for the two years (2009–2010). However, some
improvements such as geothermal heat pumps, solar water heaters, and solar panels are not subject to
the $1,500 maximum.
• The $200 cap on windows has been removed.

* Note the bill that was signed is not the same as the last tax credit bill. The last bill gave tax credits to all Energy Star compliant windows, this new bill does not allow tax credits for all windows that meet Energy Star. You could have a window that meets Energy Star and not get a tax credit, The one change that was made is the addition of the Shading Coefficient of .30 or less. Go to energystar.gov for complete details. This may be subject to change in the near future.