On January 8, 2025, Treasury issued final rules for the section 48E(h) Clean Electricity Low-Income Communities Bonus Credit Program available to low-income communities including those on Native American land or in affordable housing developments. New rules expanded the list of eligible energy sources to hydropower and geothermal energy, beyond wind and solar, and offer an extra 10% or 20% bonus credit on top of the 30% Section 48E credit. The program is expected to “allocate bonuses to 1.8 gigawatts of clean electricity generation serving low-income communities each year.” 2025 applications run from January 16-August 1, and 2026 applications from the first Monday of February to the first Friday of August.
Section 48E(h) low-income community bonus credits were created by IRA section 13702, providing Clean Energy Investment Credits to qualified facilities placed in service after December 31, 2024 with greenhouse gas emissions rates of zero.