US House extends solar/wind tax credit, Need Help in Senate

Remember those credits that were phasing out at the end of this year?

From HR 6049, Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008 (passed by the House):

Long-term extension and modification of the residential energy-efficient property credit. The bill would extend the credit for residential solar property for six years (through the end of 2014). The bill would also increase the annual credit cap (currently capped at $2,000) to $4,000. The bill would include residential small wind equipment and geothermal heat pumps as property qualifying for this credit. The bill also allows the credit to be used to offset alternative minimum tax (AMT).

Yeh! This provides some breathing room for owners of electric vehicles to create and fuel their autos using renewable energy, as well as a list of benefits for businesses (among other things.)
You may want to write your Senators and show your support now, before they go to vote on it. Extending these credits is very important, and I know there are complaints because this draws money from an unrelated tax source – potentially making taxes harder to complete on your own (though people affected by this bill probably should have an account already) and takes away a break formerly available to a small number of tax payers – but it provides a benefit to a much larger group of people.

For more information on solar opportunities, check out Solar 101 at the Environmental News Network. You can also check out Silicon Solar.

Source: Science Friday