Energy community bonus: questions and answers
Every answer links to the IRS or Treasury source.
What is an energy community?
For the clean electricity credits (sections 45, 48, 45Y and 48E), an energy community is (1) a brownfield site, (2) a metropolitan or non-metropolitan statistical area that has had 0.17% or more fossil fuel employment since 2010 and an unemployment rate at or above the national average for the prior year, or (3) a census tract (or a directly adjoining tract) where a coal mine closed after 1999 or a coal-fired generating unit was retired after 2009.
Source: IRS Notice 2023-29
How much is the energy community bonus worth?
For the investment tax credit (48 / 48E) the bonus adds 10 percentage points to the credit rate when prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements are met (for example 30% to 40%), or 2 points for projects that do not meet them. For the production tax credit (45 / 45Y) the credit amount is increased by 10%.
Source: IRS Notice 2023-29, section 2 | IRS Notice 2026-39, section 2
Which IRS list is current?
IRS Notice 2026-39. Its Appendix 1 lists the statistical areas that qualify based on 2025 unemployment rates (BLS LAUS released May 19, 2026) and fossil fuel employment through the 2023 County Business Patterns; that status is applicable as of June 10, 2026 until the next annual update. Its Appendix 2 adds coal closure tracts using MSHA and EIA data as of May 4, 2026.
Source: IRS Notice 2026-39
What are vintage 1 and vintage 2?
Since 2025 Treasury tests every county under two groupings of counties into MSAs and non-MSAs: vintage 1 (based on the 2010 Census) and vintage 2 (based on the 2020 Census). A county qualifies if it passes both the fossil fuel employment and unemployment tests under the same vintage; qualifying under either vintage is enough.
When is the location tested?
Generally when the project is placed in service. Notice 2023-29 also lets a project that is in an energy community on the date construction begins keep that status (a beginning-of-construction safe harbor). Statistical-area status changes every year with the unemployment data; coal closure tracts keep their status.
Source: IRS Notice 2023-29, section 4
Can a map tell me if my site is a brownfield?
No. The brownfield category is parcel-specific: a site within the CERCLA definition of a brownfield, or one that meets a Notice 2023-29 safe harbor (for example a site previously assessed through federal, state or tribal brownfield programs, or one with a Phase II environmental site assessment showing a hazardous substance). Census tracts and counties cannot answer it, so ECQualify reports it as not determinable.
Source: IRS Notice 2023-29, section 3.02
Does the bonus apply to battery storage?
Energy storage technology is eligible for the 48E credit and the energy community increase applies to qualified investment in energy storage placed in service in an energy community, under the same location tests.
Source: IRS Notice 2026-39, section 2
Did the 2025 tax law change solar and wind credits?
Yes. Public Law 119-21 (enacted July 4, 2025) ends the 45Y and 48E credits for applicable wind and solar facilities placed in service after December 31, 2027 if construction began after July 4, 2026. Other technologies and storage follow different schedules. Check the current IRS guidance for your technology before relying on any bonus.
Source: IRS Notice 2025-42
Is an Opportunity Zone the same as an energy community?
No. Qualified Opportunity Zones are a separate capital-gains incentive. ECQualify shows OZ status from HUD's layer as extra context only.
Source: HUD Opportunity Zones layer
What about the low-income communities bonus?
The 48(e) / 48E(h) low-income communities bonus is a separate, capacity-limited program: DOE and Treasury allocate it by application, so being in a low-income census tract alone does not earn it. ECQualify does not determine it.
Is this tax advice?
No. ECQualify reads the official IRS/Treasury lists for a point and shows the data vintage and citations. It is informational and not an IRS determination; have a qualified tax adviser confirm before you claim a credit.