By Ryan Randazzo | The Arizona Republic
“Subsidy” and “incentive” are fighting words in Arizona’s intense debate over solar power, with emotions riding high over how much help, if any, the solar industry should get.
The state’s fledgling solar economy is beginning to take root, but it can’t yet stand on its own without support from the federal government, states and utilities.
Solar supporters say that the industry won’t need subsidies forever but that incentives such as the 30 percent tax credit on the price of solar panels are essential to get it established and competing with traditional power sources.
In addition to the tax credits, utilities give homeowners with rooftop solar panels full retail credit for the electricity they send to the grid. However, utilities want to cut that credit because they say it is more expensive than buying power on the market from power plants. Homeowners with solar — or those considering adding the panels — don’t want the payments for power they contribute to the utility grid to drop.
