​ Incentives​

• African American Heritage Preservation Program: This program provides capital grants to nonprofits, local governments, businesses and individuals to assist in the preservation of buildings, sites, or communities of historical and cultural importance to the African American experience in Maryland. 
  

• Commercial & Canopy Solar Grant Program: This program provides funding for solar PV systems that will be owned by or directly benefit (1) low-to-moderate income communities located in a census tract with an average median income at or below 80% of the average median income for the State, or (2) overburdened or underserved communities.

• Commercial & Industrial Grant Program: This program provides eligible commercial buildings funding for cost-effective energy efficiency and conservation upgrades for existing, major renovation, and new construction projects that are above minimum code and performance standards and claim at least 20% energy savings.
  

• Electrifying Community Buildings Grant Program: This program provides funding for eligible commercial buildings seeking to replace existing fossil fuel-powered equipment with efficient electric alternatives.

• Geothermal Rebate Program: This program provides first-come, first-served rebates to residents, businesses, nonprofits, and State and local government agenices that install geothermal heating and cooling systems at their homes and buildings. 

• Historic Preservation Capital Grant Program: The Maryland Historical Trust’s Historic Preservation Capital Grant Program provides grants of up to $100,000 to nonprofits, local governments, businesses, and individuals for capital projects that promote the acquisition, rehabilitation or restoration, or predevelopment of historic properties that provide a public benefit. Energy projects as part of an acquisition or rehabilitation are eligible expenditures. ​

• Historic Preservation Capital Loan Program: The Maryland Historical Trust's Historic Preservation Capital Loan Program provides loan assistance to nonprofits, local governments, businesses, and individuals for the acquisition, rehabilitation, or predevelopment costs of historic properties that cannot access traditional financing. Energy projects as part of an acquisition or rehabilitation/restoration are eligible expenditures. 
  

• Jane E. Lawton Conservation Loan Program: This program provides low-interest financing for cost-effective energy efficiency and conservation projects in commercial buildings. 
  

• MDPACE: The Maryland Clean Energy Center (MCEC) administers the State of Maryland's commercial property assessed clean energy (C-PACE) program, which is a means of financing energy and/or water efficiency, renewable energy, resiliency, or environmental remediation measures in commercial buildings with no up-front cost.
  

• Maryland Agricultural Education and Rural Development Assistance Fund Grant​: This program run by the Rural Maryland Council provides grants to rural-serving nonprofit organizations that promote statewide and regional planning, economic and community development, and agricultural and forestry education. Combined heat & power is an eligible expense. 
  

• Maryland Clean Energy Capital: MCEC's MCAP Program offers clean energy and efficiency financing to government, institutions, and nonprofit organizations.  
  

• Open Energy Grant Program: This program provides grants for energy projects that do not fit the criteria of the Maryland Energy Administration's other grant programs. 
  

• Preservation Maryland Heritage Fund: In cooperation with the Maryland Historical Trust, this program provides grants to projects that protect historical and cultural resources and that promote innovative demonstration projects that can be successfully replicated to meet Maryland’s historic preservation needs. Energy efficiency upgrades, as part of a greater project that meets the program’s criteria, may be eligible. 
  

• Residential & Commercial Energy Storage Grant Program: This program provides grants to support the deployment of energy storage systems for both residential and commercial customers across Maryland. 
  

• Residential Equity Grant Program: This program combines the former Energy Efficiency Equity Program and Solar Energy Equity Program for the convenience of organizations serving residential buildings and is open to non-profit organizations and local government entities. It offers funding to support energy efficiency and renewable energy projects that benefit Maryland residents with low-to-moderate incomes. 

• Resilient Maryland Grant Program​: This program provides funding to Maryland communities and organizations to offset the costs of planning, designing, and constructing microgrids, resilient facility power systems, ​and resiliency hubs.
  

• 179D Energy Efficient Buildings Tax Deduction: New and existing commercial and multifamily buildings that demonstrate a 25% to 50% improvement from their pre-retrofit baseline EUI may be able to claim a tax deduction. 
  

• Sec. 48E Clean Electricity Investment Tax Credit: The credit is available to taxpayers with a qualified facility and energy storage technology placed in service after Dec. 31, 2024. The Clean Electricity Investment Credit phase-out starts for the later of 2032 or when U.S. greenhouse gas emissions from electricity are 25% of 2022 emissions or lower.
  

• Sec. 45Y Clean Electricity Production Tax Credit: The credit is available to taxpayers with a qualified facility and energy storage technology placed in service after Dec. 31, 2024. The Clean Electricity Production Credit phase-out starts for the later of 2032 or when U.S. greenhouse gas emissions from electricity are 25% of 2022 emissions or lower.​​
  

• Visit the Financial Resources page for a full list of EmPOWER Maryland​ utility incentive opportunities.
  

​ Technical Assistance

• Department of General Services Decarbonization Task Order: DGS has selected three engineering firms to assist State agencies, local governments, and nonprofits with decarbonization planning and Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) compliance planning. Eligible entities benefit from an expedited procurement process by pursuing a work order for the firms’ services via DGS.

• Department of General Services Third-party Verification Contract: State agencies, local governments, and nonprofits may use DGS's contracted vendor for third-party verification, which is a requirement of the State Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) policy.

• Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) Technical Assistance: Provides a variety of technical assistance services to clients, such as community-based organizations; state, county, and city governments; and healthcare providers and payers. Offerings include programmatic capacity building; innovative financing; coordinated delivery of housing, health, and energy services; and healthy housing policy.

• Interfaith Power & Light Clean Energy Office Hours: IPL's Maryland chapter offers Office Hours for houses of worship to discuss building decarbonization goals. IPL can assist with energy benchmarking, decarbonization planning, and with applying for incentives.  

• Maryland Clean Energy Center (MCEC) Procurement & Technical Assistance: MCEC provides procurement and technical assistance services for clean energy and decarbonization projects. 
  
  
• Montgomery County Green Bank Technical Assistance Program: The Green Bank TA program serves commercial entities. Eligible property types include nonprofit-owned properties such as faith-based and educational institutions. There are no square footage requirements. Available only for buildings located in Montgomery County.
  

• Montgomery County Benchmarking Ambassadors:​ Curates this list of stakeholders, volunteers, and energy service companies who have received an orientation to the County’s Benchmarking Law on how to properly benchmark in Portfolio Manager. Please note that inclusion in this list does not confer certification, an official endorsement, or approval from the Montgomery County Government or any of its agencies.​

• Nonprofit Navigator​: The Department of Commerce's Nonprofit Navigator helps connect nonprofits with grants.

Resources​

• Benchmarking: Benchmarking improves understanding of energy consumption patterns; helps identify energy saving opportunities within a portfolio of buildings; and manages business bottom line through consistent data collection and tracking. 
  

• Energy Audits: Conducting an energy audit is a recommended first step in a building’s electrification and decarbonization journey. 

• ENERGY STAR Tax Credit and Rebate Finder Tool​: This tool helps homeowners find financial incentives for efficient appliances, such as heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, insulation, windows, and electric upgrades. 
  

• Better Buildings Initiative: The Department of Energy's Better Buildings Initiative helps commercial and industrial buildings identify cost-effective energy and water efficiency solutions by barrier, building type, sector, technology, and more. ​