Payments help church in area get solar panels
A Conroe church is going green thanks to a federal program that allows nonprofit organizations direct payments from the IRS for solar systems.
Houston-based Texon Solar is working on the $1 million-plus project at Grace Crossing Church at 105 FM 1488.
Steven Khan, CEO of Texon, said the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 is a game changer for nonprofits such as churches.
“One of the biggest advantages for going solar is that the government is offering tax credits for individuals and businesses,” Khan said. “They have been doing this since 2005. However, it’s tax credits, so churches have never qualified because they don’t pay taxes.”
According to the Department of Energy, the program gives tax-exempt entities equal access to clean energy incentives by introducing the direct pay option in lieu of a tax credit that for-profit businesses receive.
Jerry Riggs, an elder at the church, said the new legislation jump-started the project.
“The IRA was a big impetus for why we pulled the trigger on it,” Riggs said. “If it wasn’t for that, we would not have done it. It was a big incentive when nonprofits were added to the legislation.”
Khan said nonprofits can get between 30% and 50% of the project’s cost paid through direct payments.
“This is the first of many,” Khan said of the project with the church. “We have several others in the contracting stage now.”
Khan said using a year of electric bills, his company can determine the number of panels needed for the building. The project for Grace Crossing includes the installation of 1,220 panels. If the usage stays about the same, he added, the system will offset the church’s electric bills for up to 30 years.
Riggs said the system will reduce the church’s electrical costs and help reduce its carbon footprint.
Khan launched his family-run business about three years ago. Texon Solar focuses on commercial solar projects.
“I started looking into solar about eight years ago and was working for another solar company,” Khan said. “I realized I wanted to do more. I knew (solar) was going to be big in the amount of money businesses, primarily nonprofits, could get back. It’s a great time to be in the solar business because it saves people a tremendous amount of money.”