Federal Tax Credits For Heating and Cooling Equipment Reinstated
February 17, 2009, President Obama signed a stimulus bill (The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) that made some significant changes to the energy efficiency tax credits. The highlights are:
- The tax credits that were previously effective for 2009, have been extended to 2010 as well.
- The tax credit has been raised from 10% to 30%.
- The tax credits that were for a specific dollar amount (ex $300 for a CAC), have been converted to 30% of the cost. The maximum credit has been raised from $500 to $1500 for the two years (2009–2010). However, some improvements such as geothermal heat pumps, solar water heaters, and solar panels are not subject to the $1,500 maximum. The IRS is responsible for the actual implementation of this legislation. We won’t know exactly how this tax credit will be applied until the IRS releases its final ruling. Keep updated by visiting the Government’s Energy Star link.
| HVAC | Central A/C | Split Systems: EER >=13 SEER >= 16 Package systems: EER >= 12 SEER >= 14 |
30% of cost, up to $1,500 Note — not all ENERGY STAR products will qualify for the tax credit. ENERGY STAR Spec: • Split Systems: EER >= 12 SEER >= 14.5 • Package systems: EER >= 11 SEER >= 14 |
| Air Source Heat Pumps | Split Systems: HSPF >= 8.5 EER >= 12.5 SEER >= 15 Packaged Systems: HSPF >= 8 EER >= 12 SEER >= 14 |
30% of cost, up to $1,500 Note — not all ENERGY STAR products will qualify for the tax credit. ENERGY STAR Spec: • Split Systems: HSPF >= 8.2 EER >= 12 SEER >= 14.5 • Package systems: HSPF >= 8 EER >= 11 SEER >= 14 |
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| Natural Gas or Propane Furnace |
AFUE >= 95 | 30% of cost, up to $1,500 Note — not all ENERGY STAR products will qualify for the tax credit. ENERGY STAR Spec: • Gas Furnaces: AFUE >= 90 |
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| Oil Furnace | AFUE >= 90 | 30% of cost, up to $1,500 Note — not all ENERGY STAR products will qualify for the tax credit. ENERGY STAR Spec: • Oil Furnaces: AFUE >= 85 |
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| Gas, Propane, or Oil Hot Water Boiler |
AFUE >= 90 | 30% of cost, up to $1,500 Note — not all ENERGY STAR products will qualify for the tax credit. ENERGY STAR Spec: • Boilers: AFUE >= 85 |
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| Geo- Thermal Heat Pump |
Geo-Thermal Heat Pump |
Closed Loop: EER >= 14.1 COP >= 3.3 Open Loop: EER >= 16.2 COP >= 3.6 Direct Expansion: EER >= 15 COP >= 3.5 |
Same criteria as ENERGY STAR: 30% of the cost - NOT subject to $1,500 cap Use IRS Form 5695 Must be “placed into service” between Jan. 1, 2008–Dec. 31, 2016. |
Updated information on Energy Tax Credits under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 has now been posted to AmericanStandardAir.com at the link below. Model numbers and combinations have been updated per the product marketing team. Printable certificates can be downloaded by choosing eligible model numbers from the drop-down
lists at this link:
http://www.americanstandardair.com/HomeOwner/LatestUpdates/EnergyTaxCreditSystems2.aspx
If you need an updated list of qualifying systems, you can query the AHRI database using the above criteria. The website address for the database is:
(http://www.ahridirectory.org/ahridirectory/pages/home.aspx )
The AHRI website allows you to download the results into a spreadsheet so you can easily sort the information.
To claim the tax credit when filing 2009 taxes, homeowners will need a manufacturer certificate stating that the system or product they purchased qualifies. As with the previous tax credit, these certificates will be available on
AmericanStandardair.com.
Additional tax credit information can be found at the following link:
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=products.pr_tax_credits.