The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services says it has begun issuing consumer rebates for previously purchased solar energy systems. Since assuming responsibilities of the state's Energy Office on July 1, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam has made paying the rebates a priority, according to the agency.
Due to the overwhelming number of applications for a solar rebate, the original funding for the Solar Energy Systems Incentives Program was quickly depleted by June 2009.Â
However, in 2010, the Florida legislature passed House Bill 15A, which provided additional funding for the program to ensure that all eligible applicants were rewarded for their investments in solar energy systems. This legislation requires that rebates be calculated by dividing the total amount of available funds by the total dollar value of approved applications.
Based on the total appropriation and the 8,800 approved rebate applications, each consumer will receive approximately 52% of his or her requested rebate amount, the agency says. Additional information can be found at www.freshfromflorida.com/solarrebate.
