Solar energy tax credit extended

By Kawehi Haug
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawai'i homeowners can claim solar energy tax credits for five more years, which officials hope will keep Hawai'i at the forefront of renewable energy use.

Gov. Linda Lingle signed a bill Thursday to extend the credits until January 2008 for families and businesses that install solar water heating systems, photovoltaic electricity panels or wind-powered energy systems.

Hawai'i leads the nation in per capita use of solar energy, with almost 60,000 households using solar water heating systems, said Mark Recktenwald, director of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

Bob Keyser, vice president of construction for Gentry Builders in 'Ewa, said that since it started offering home buyers the option to install solar water heaters about three years ago, the number of customers choosing to go solar has "grown by a few percentage points each year." Now, one in four Gentry homes have solar water heaters, Keyser said.

But Rolf Christ, owner and operator of R&R Solar Supply, said he has seen a drop in the number of requests for solar energy installations. Christ said his company did 337 fewer installations in 2002 than in 1999, a decline he attributes to a lack of public awareness of the tax credits and other incentives.

Single family homeowners who install solar water heating systems or photovoltaic systems qualify for a tax credit of 35 percent of the cost of the unit, up to $1,750. Families who buy wind-powered energy systems qualify for a 20 percent tax credit, up to $1,500.

In addition to the tax credit, Hawaiian Electric Company offers homeowners a $750 rebate for the cost of installing a water heating system.

"If people only knew that these programs exist, we would see even more homes using solar energy," Christ said.