Treasury Releases New Guidance on Solar, Wind Investments to Power Low-Income Communities

Today, as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America Agenda, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS), in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE), released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program.  This allocated credit program is designed to provide up to a 20% competitive boost on top of the existing 30% investment tax credit for qualified wind or solar energy property in low-income communities.

Today’s NPRM builds on the Notice, released by Treasury in February, which established the program and provided high-level information about the capacity allocations that will be available in 2023 and Treasury’s policy intentions for the program. In developing today’s NPRM, Treasury and IRS, in partnership with DOE, have considered hundreds of written comments from and conversations with businesses, non-profits, and individuals from communities across the country.

The publication of today’s NPRM in the Federal Register kicks off a 30-day comment period. As detailed in the NPRM, Treasury will release final guidance on the 2023 program, including detailed application instructions, following the comment period. Later this year, Treasury will also begin accepting applications in the second half of 2023 for all four statutory categories, including:

1. Facilities located in low-income communities;
2. Facilities located on Indian land;
3. Facilities that are part of affordable housing;
4. Facilities that deliver direct financial benefits to low-income households.

As we continue to work towards implementation of this program, we strongly encourage our partners to continue to invest time, energy and dollars into clean energy projects that will lower energy costs for all Americans, especially for those in energy-burdened and low-income communities. Learn more about the tax credits available to businesses, entrepreneurs, families, and communities looking to invest towards building the clean energy future.