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After cuts to federal solar credits, this OC group is racing to get homeowners to install
Irvine's University Hills neighborhood is where OC Goes Solar got its start helping homeowners install solar power systems.
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Courtesy OC Goes Solar
)
If you want to cut the costs of installing solar panels and a battery on your home, you’d better install now.
On July 4, President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act into law. Among other things, the law ended many of the clean energy incentives established by the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, including eliminating the 30% residential solar tax credit by Dec. 31, 2025.
The cost of installing solar is on average around $30,000. That credit helps reduce the cost of necessary roof repairs, the solar panels and battery themselves, and electrical panel upgrades.
But now, that credit expires at the end of this year, instead of in 2032, plus a two-year phaseout.
“Losing that tax incentive is just a huge, huge loss and a disservice to the community and energy independence,” said Senait Forthal, founder and executive director of Irvine-based nonprofit OC Goes Solar. Since 2017, the group has helped more than 800 homeowners install rooftop solar systems.
Senait Forthal, second from right, founded the OC Goes Solar nonprofit. She's seen here at an event at the Great Park.
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Courtesy OC Goes Solar
)
Forthal worries that progress will stall significantly with the end of the tax credit.
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“ The federal government has quickly changed that solar incentive that really made solar accessible and affordable for so many people,” Forthal said.
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That’s why Forthal’s group is on a mission to help as many homeowners install solar before the credit expires, as well as take advantage of other local financial clean energy incentives.
“The bottom line is that people have to make the investment by December 2025 to be able to take advantage of the solar tax credit,” Forthal said.
Local clean energy incentives
- The Orange County Power Authority provides energy to Irvine, Buena Park and Fullerton. It offers a $1,000 rebate toward a battery and free EV chargers. Learn more here. Check with your local power provider for incentives in your area.
- TECH Clean California, a state incentive program, has cost-saving credits for appliances, such as heat pumps and heat pump water heaters.
- Check out our previous reporting about why heat pump water heaters can help you save money and help the power grid.
Forthal and fellow neighbors in faculty housing at UC Irvine organized OC Goes Solar in 2017 after realizing a lot of people wanted to install a solar system but couldn’t navigate the process. Forthal has a background in clean energy consulting, so she took the lead. That first year, 74 of their neighbors installed solar.
In 2019, the group became a nonprofit, and in 2022 it partnered with the city of Irvine to help facilitate the city’s solar incentive effort, Solarize Irvine.
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The group walks homeowners through the application and financial incentives processes. They also vet local contractors and negotiate group rates and warranties to drive down costs — Forthal said they usually cut 10% to 20% of the cost that way — and host educational workshops about installing solar that are free to the public.
Learn more
What: OC Goes Solar is hosting a free public workshop, in partnership with the city of Irvine, about navigating solar installation.
When: Aug. 20, 6:30 to 8 p.m.
Where: Sweet Shade Ability Center, 15 Sweet Shade, Irvine
Forthal said interested homeowners should start the process as soon as possible because there will likely be a bottleneck of demand closer to when the credit ends.
“Solar takes between eight to 10 weeks to complete,” Forthal said. “ Once you apply for permit, you have to wait for that. If you have an HOA, you have to get approval from the HOA. All these things take time.”
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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