It’s still a little early to tell which Democrat will face off against Donald Trump in the 2020 Presidential Election, but we already know where the candidates stand on solar power. What will the future hold for tax incentives and renewable energy solutions like solar panels and EV charging stations? That largely depends on who wins the election. Let’s take a look at the three likely contenders and their solar power stance, plus Donald Trump’s attitude toward the solar industry. To learn more about solar panels in Dallas, call Kosmos Solar today to schedule a solar power evaluation for your home or business!
Joe Biden
Former VP Joe Biden did a lot to expand solar power in the US while Obama was in office. However, his official stance on it seems rather vague now. His campaign’s official website talks mostly about his history of reducing solar costs under Obama’s presidency. It also states that, if elected, Biden will be a friend to state and local governments that take action against climate change by increasing renewable energy sources like solar power.
Biden has been a solar energy proponent in the past. He spoke at the 2015 Solar Power International conference to announce $102 million in grants that funded many solar power industry projects. Let’s hope that, win or lose, he continues to speak up for solar energy solutions.
Bernie Sanders
Bernie Sanders’ Green New Deal contains many specific initiatives to expand renewable energy research and development. Basically, Sanders proposes an addition to the federal Power Marketing Administrations (PMAs): a new PMA that would focus on solar, wind, and geothermal energy sources. Instead of the federal solar tax credit, Sanders prefers a national energy grid that would generate revenue to pay for itself and create 20 million tax-revenue-generating jobs. He also plans to offset the cost by raising taxes on fossil fuel companies.
Sanders’ plan also sets aside $964 billion for “sliding-scale grants for low- and moderate-income families and small businesses to invest in cheaper electricity.”
Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth Warren’s solar energy plan might just be the most ambitious of all the candidates. She has called for extensions of the solar tax credit, which is currently slated to reduce incrementally over the next few years until it phases out completely for residential solar customers in 2023. A self-professed “believer in net metering”, Warren wants to invest billions of dollars into “research and development of microgrids and advanced energy storage”.
It sounds like Warren is ready to jump into renewable energy expansion with both feet. She has a 100% Clean Energy plan that requires 100% of electricity generation to come from renewable and zero-emission sources by 2035.
Donald Trump
Donald Trump hasn’t had much to say about solar power or renewable energy, but his Section 201 tariffs on imported solar panels were designed to encourage more panels to be manufactured by Americans. Unfortunately, tariff-related job losses reached 62,000 between 2016 and 2018. Recent studies have also shown that the tariffs prevented $19 billion in private solar project investment. Trump has done little overall to answer the public’s demand for solar energy. Let’s hope for better results and more support for the solar industry going forward.
Kosmos Solar: Solar Energy is Our Business
Regardless of who ends up in the Oval Office in 2020, there are ways to make your solar panel installation more affordable. Call Kosmos Solar today to speak with one of our specialists about tax incentives, savings programs, and finance options for residential solar panels. We provide renewable energy solutions to the entire Dallas-Fort Worth area!
