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Going Solar in Arkansas
Help birds by installing rooftop solar panels. It's never been so easy.
Every day, the sun channels energy onto your roof. Solar panels let you capture some of that energy and use it to power your home, business, or electric car while lowering your electricity bill. By switching to solar power, you’ll reduce the carbon pollution behind climate change that threatens many birds, like the White-breasted Nuthatch above, and their habitats.
What’s the catch? Installing rooftop solar takes some research, planning, and upfront costs. Those costs vary by state, and different states have different funding opportunities. Keep in mind that you will probably recoup those upfront costs within a decade with the money saved on your electricity bill—and you'll continue to save more money later.
Solar Power in Arkansas
Many homes and businesses in Arkansas are powered by solar panels. There’s enough solar energy installed in Arkansas to power 2,000 homes (137 megawatts of energy) a year, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association.
As of 2017, $165 million had been invested on solar installations in Arkansas, which supports more than 30 solar companies that employ more than 275 people.
Information for Homeowners
If you choose to purchase solar panels for your roof, you can pay for them up-front or finance them with a solar loan, which allows you to pay them off over the course of several years. In either case, you can save extra money by taking advantage of rebates and incentives, which are offered to encourage solar panel installations. One of these is the Investment Tax Credit, a federal tax credit that helps people pay for solar projects—and lets you subtract 30 percent of the system's cost from your tax bill.
Learn about options for installing rooftop solar in Arkansas here. Check back in a few months, as we continue to develop our solar program to cover the entire United States.
Information for Renters
Renters can't usually install solar panels on their roofs, but in some states they still have the option to use and invest in solar power and other renewable energy sources. Unfortunately, Arkansas is not one of those states that allows renters to choose their energy supplier. Learn more about energy choice from the American Coalition of Competitive Energy Suppliers.
