Solar PV Technology Adoption in the United States: An Empirical Investigation of State Policy Eectiveness

摘要

State policy incentives for solar power have grown signicantly in the past severalyears. This paper uses county level panel data to investigate whether state policyincentives are effective in increasing residential solar PV capacity. Empirical findingsshow that tax incentives, rebates, solar-specic mandates, and loan financing programsare important drivers of residential PV adoption. These results suggest that policyincentives play a significant role in encouraging wider use of solar energy. Results alsopoint to a significant positive relationship between hybrid vehicle sales and residentialPV adoption, indicating the importance of pro-environmental preference as a predictorof solar PV demand.