On July 27, 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published the federal requirements that will allow Maryland and other states to apply for the full residential rebate funds to deploy both of these programs.​ Please note that the High-Efficiency Electric Home Rebate Program will only be available to participants that meet the income-qualifications of the program.

However, funding for the HOMES Rebate and the High-Efficiency Electric Home Rebate IRA Programs is not yet available to Maryland residents, as MEA now needs to develop and submit an application to DOE based on the information just released on July 27, 2023. The process by which these IRA residential rebate will be come available is outlined below:

Overview of the anticipated process by which rebates will be made available via the residential-focused IRA rebate programs

1. DOE has released the funding opportunity announcement for funding. 

2. State energy offices, including the Maryland Energy Administration on behalf of the State of Maryland, will then need to develop and submit detailed applications to DOE that propose how each individual state will meet DOE’s requirements (released on 7/27/23) and implement their state’s HOMES Rebate and the High-Efficiency Electric Home Rebate programs.​ 

3. Once DOE is satisfied with a state’s proposed implementation process for the residential rebate programs, DOE will enter into a funding agreement with each state energy office.​

4. Upon DOE entering into a funding agreement with the Maryland Energy Administration, MEA can seek state-level spending authority for the federal funding and begin sourcing any resources that may be needed to help implement new programs of this scale.   

5. MEA can then issue funding announcements outlining program eligibility requirements and submission instructions for the Maryland-specific HOMES rebate programs.

IRA Timing for the residential home rebate programs​:   While DOE has made the funding available for applications and announced program guidelines on the DOE webpage for the home rebate programs, MEA does not yet have the funds to award rebates to Maryland customers.  Assuming a timely funding award from DOE, MEA anticipates that these rebates will be available for residents during the 2nd quarter of calendar year 2024. MEA is aware of the interest in these programs, and is looking for opportunities to get the rebate programs available to the public as soon as possible.  

If you are interested in getting updates on these new federal programs from MEA, as well as other MEA energy programs, please follow MEA on social media at Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn. 

For Maryland residents with upcoming, time-sensitive energy projects: As MEA is reviewing DOE’s eligibility requirements and program criteria, the application is likely to be extensive and MEA’s plan will ultimately require DOE approval.​ Therefore, any project completed prior to DOE issuing programmatic guidance and MEA, in turn, publishing a funding opportunity announcement detailing the IRA-funded program requirements runs a risk of potentially being ineligible for IRA-funding.

Additionally, DOE addresses the subject of whether or not rebates will be available retroactively on its  frequently asked questions webpage for the residential IRA programs.  Question #11 from this webpage states “Given that states must establish programs that ensure compliance with the law (e.g., eligibility of household, technology, program reporting), it will be difficult to offer rebates for projects completed before program requirements are fully defined and programs are in place.”

Additional Information from DOE:

• DOE Home Energy Rebate Programs Frequently Asked Questions

• DOE Summary of Federal Clean Energy Tax Credits for Consumers​ -  Please note that the Maryland Energy Administration cannot provide tax advice.  If you have any tax questions, please contact  a licensed tax professional.