I don't understand the gripe in this article. Frankly, I do not regard a tax credit opportunity as a "subsidy"--particularly for individuals. Just because a neighbor gets a break on *his* taxes does not mean you pay *more* taxes--
There is a lot to be said for solar panels, depending on how you look at it. You get your electricity from your own system…and do not need to earn the money to buy electricity, which means every dollar you generate in power is really a dollar plus thirty cents in taxes you do not have to pay.
And, what would you spend that 20-30K on? Exxon stock, so you can get dividends on which you have to pay regular income tax?
There are a lot of tax breaks that people do not consider about solar power, which have little to do with tax credits.
There is also a movement out there on the part of utility companies which do not like having solar powered individuals on the grid…and they try to gin up resentment among the regular customers against those who have solar panels.
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There is also a movement out there on the part of utility companies which do not like having solar powered individuals on the grid…and they try to gin up resentment among the regular customers against those who have solar panels."
That's true. Those companies are each government-linked or owned by government and would like to keep all residents under their economic control. Good point about the tax credits, too. Battery storage is also a good idea for those who can do it.
In my opinion, Concorde has some of the most cost-effective AGM batteries, and Crown, some of the most cost-effective regular flooded lead-acid batteries for those who can make sure that the batteries are adequately contained and vented (thicker plates for longer battery life, see
Crown "safety first" file for solar system charge controller settings in the table under "Renewable Energy Charging Systems"). There are more expensive brands that are also great, but they're...more expensive.