Office of the Vice President

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THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Vice President

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, January 30, 1998
VICE PRESIDENT GORE ANNOUNCES $2,000 SOLAR TAX CREDIT

Meeting the Challenge of Global Warming;
Protecting our Environment and Creating New Jobs

FAIRFIELD, CA -- Vice President Gore today proposed a $2,000 solar tax credit to help American homeowners and businesses adopt clean energy technologies that create jobs and fight global warming.
"By cutting taxes for those who help us cut pollution -- by promoting cutting-edge industries and technologies that help clean up our environment -- we will meet the challenge of global warming for tomorrow, while creating new jobs for today," the Vice President said.
Speaking at the dedication of a new British Petroleum solar manufacturing plant, the Vice President said the solar tax credit is a key element in the $6.13 billion package of tax incentives and R&D spending announced by President Clinton in his State of the Union address. The proposed five-year package will promote energy efficiency and renewable energy sources.
As an incentive to homeowners and businesses, the Vice President proposed a tax credit equal to 15 percent of the cost of a rooftop solar system -- up to $1,000 for water heating systems, and up to $2,000 for photovoltaic panels. The tax credit would apply to systems put in service starting in 1999 and would extend through 2003 for water heating systems and 2005 for photovoltaic.
The Vice President said that solar and other renewable energy sources are critical to efforts to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases contributing to global warming . He said that solar energy use in the United States is expected to grow 300-fold by the year 2015. It will then be producing enough clean energy to power a million homes, cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 5 million tons a year -- the equivalent of taking more than 3 million cars off the road.
The Vice President also reported that a plan announced by the President last June to put 1 million solar panels on rooftops by 2010 is well ahead of schedule. States and utilities across the country already have announced plans aiming to install nearly half a million solar energy systems.
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