Earlier this month, Governor Matt Blunt pitched a ‘green’ tax holiday for Missourians.

Missouri residents shopping for new appliances would receive an extra incentive to purchase energy-efficient alternatives under a state sales tax holiday, named the Show-Me Green Tax Holiday. The plan calls for a week long elimination of state sales tax on Energy Star designated appliances each year.

Appliances must exceed federal energy standards by 20 percent to receive the Energy Star distinction.

The Energy Star is a US government program, started in 1992, that is a joint project of the Department of Energy (DoE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The list of consumer goods that can qualify for an energy star rating has expanded steadily ever since.

Some Energy Star labeled products give tax credits to purchasers and switching to Energy Star rated appliances can save an average of $80 a year on home energy bills.

For those of us NOT living in Missouri, the Sierra Club has a list of ‘green’ tax incentives. Go to this page which highlights environmental issues around the country. Click on Energy Incentives. A new window will open and prompt you for you zip code. From there you can search for local incentives.

Things like:

* Hybrid vehicle tax credit: this credit varies by make and model, but can up to $3,000.
* Home energy efficiency tax credit: up to $500 for home improvements designed to make your home more energy efficient, such as new windows or a more efficient heating/cooling system.
* Residential solar and fuel cell tax credit: up to $2,000 for installation of a solar electric, solar water heating, or fuel cell system. Any excess credit can be carried forward one additional year.
* Energy subsidy exemption: Any rebates or incentives you receive for energy conservation measures, directly or indirectly, from utilities are not counted as taxable income.

With tax incentives and lowered operating costs, lessening your impact on the environment has become easier on your wallet.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 10th, 2008 at 11:05 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.