Solar Break, Tax Shift: Who Picks Up the Property Tax Tab?

In New Hampshire, about two-thirds of towns have adopted a local option allowing homeowners and businesses to exclude solar equipment from their property’s assessed value when calculating taxes. HB 1002, sponsored by Len Turcotte, would have repealed that exemption and required towns to tax solar installations as part of property value.

Supporters of repeal, including Michael Vose, argued the exemption creates a tax fairness issue: when one property owner reduces their taxable value by exempting solar equipment, the total tax levy for the town does not shrink — it simply gets redistributed. In other words, if the town still needs to raise the same amount of money, the difference is absorbed by everyone else, meaning non-solar property owners carry a slightly larger share of the burden.

Opponents, including Joseph Guthrie, emphasized that towns voluntarily adopted the exemption and can repeal it locally if they believe it shifts the burden unfairly. The New Hampshire House of Representatives ultimately voted 187–157 to table the bill, leaving the exemption in place.

In a property tax system where towns must raise a fixed amount of revenue, any exemption — whether for solar, veterans, or other categories — doesn’t eliminate taxes; it reallocates them. The debate over solar isn’t about whether taxes exist, but about who ultimately pays a larger share of the same total bill.