Recovery Act

The purpose of the 1603 payment is to reimburse eligible applicants for a portion of the cost of installing specified energy property used in a trade or business or for the production of income. A 1603 payment is made after the energy property is placed in service; a 1603 payment is not made prior to or during construction of the energy property.

Eligibility Deadlines

To be eligible, a property must be placed in service in 2009, 2010, or 2011 or placed in service after 2011 but only if construction of the property began during 2009, 2010, or 2011. Properties placed in service after 2011 must be placed in service by the credit termination date (see Guidance, page 5).

Types of Applications

1. A Placed in Service application is submitted for all energy property that is complete and has been placed in service.
2. A Begun Construction application is also submitted for energy property that is placed in service after 2011 to demonstrate that construction of the energy property began during 2009, 2010, or 2011.

Application Deadlines

For all properties placed in service in 2009, 2010, or 2011, the applicant must submit a Placed in Service application before October 1, 2012.

For all properties placed in service after 2011, the applicant must submit a Begun Construction application before October 1, 2012 and the applicant must submit a Placed in Service application by the later of September 30, 2012 or 90 days after the energy property is placed in service.

FAQs – General

These are FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS about the 1603 program and their answers.

Placed in Service Applications – for energy property that has been placed in service

1. Read the GUIDANCE, TERMS AND CONDITIONS, and SAMPLE APPLICATION.
2. If you do not already have one, request a DUNS number by calling 1-866-705-5711. This is needed to complete section 3A of the application.
3. Gather all of the documentation needed to complete section 6A of the application. Print the APPLICANT CHECKLIST to ensure you have all the required documentation.
4. Complete the on-line Placed in Service Application and sign the Terms and Conditions at https://treas1603.nrel.gov/.
5. Register with the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) at www.ccr.gov/startregistration.aspx. The CCR registration must be completed and active before a payment can be made.

Accountant’s Certification for Placed in Service

For energy properties placed in service having a cost basis in excess of $500,000, an applicant must submit an ACCOUNTANT’S CERTIFICATION with their application in section 6A.

Assignment of Payment to a Financial Institution

An applicant has the option of assigning the 1603 payment to a financial institution. This means that the 1603 payment does not go into the applicant’s account, rather it goes to the financial institution itself (perhaps for repayment of the construction loan). The 1603 payment cannot be assigned to an installer, contractor, or other non-financial institution.

For information on assigning a 1603 payment to a financial institution, click on these links:

• ASSIGNMENT INFORMATION
• NOTICE OF ASSIGNMENT submitted with application

Begun Construction Applications – for energy property on which construction has begun

(Do not submit this application if your property will be placed in service by December 31, 2011.)

1. Read the GUIDANCE, TERMS AND CONDITIONS, and SAMPLE BEGUN CONSTRUCTION APPLICATION.
2. If you do not already have one, request a DUNS number by calling 1-866-705-5711. This is needed to complete section 3A of the application.
3. Gather all of the documentation needed to complete section 6B of the application. Print the BEGUN CONSTRUCTION APPLICANT CHECKLIST to ensure you have all the required documentation.
4. Complete the on-line Begun Construction Application at https://treas1603.nrel.gov/.
5. Once the energy property has been placed in service, follow the steps above to submit the Placed in Service application.

FAQs – Begun Construction (NEW – see new Question/Answer #23 and #24 beginning on page 6)

For energy properties not placed in service in 2009, 2010, or 2011, an eligibility requirement of the 1603 program is that construction of the energy property must begin in 2009, 2010, or 2011. These are FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS and answers about how to meet this requirement.

Accountant’s Report for Begun Construction – 5% method and basis of $1+ million

An applicant may qualify as having begun construction by satisfying either the “physical work” or “5% of costs” method or both. These are described in the Guidance and FAQs.

For projects relying on the 5% of costs method and having a cost basis of $1 million or more the applicant must submit (in addition to other documentation described in the Applicant Checklist) a report from an independent accountant on the eligible costs of the energy property paid or incurred by December 31, 2011. This report may be in the form of one of the following:

• An Agreed-Upon Procedures (AUP) Report prepared by an independent accountant in accordance with AT Section 201, “Agreed-Upon Procedure Engagements” of the AICPA
• An Examination Report in accordance with AT Section 101, “Attest Engagements” (Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements 10, as amended) of the AICPA

INSTRUCTIONS AND EXAMPLE FINDINGS for the AUP Report are provided.

For the Examination Report any format that follows AT Section 101 and includes the required information in the BEGUN CONSTRUCTION APPLICANT CHECKLIST is acceptable.

Annual Report

In signing the Terms and Conditions (#5), an applicant agrees to submit a performance report for five years. A report is due annually, 30 days after the anniversary of the date the energy property was placed in service. Applicants receive a reminder notification via email 30 days before the report is due.

1. Read the SAMPLE ANNUAL REPORT.
2. Gather the documentation needed to complete section 4.3 of the report.
3. Complete the on-line annual report at https://treas1603.nrel.gov.

Questions

We are best prepared to respond to questions through email. Questions regarding how to apply for the 1603 Program and how to complete the annual report, as well as general questions about program eligibility, can be sent to 1603Questions@treasury.gov.

Questions regarding issues with the online system; requests to add supporting documentation to an already submitted application, change the username associated with a property, reset security questions; or questions regarding documentation requested by the review team can be emailed to Treas1603@nrel.gov.

We cannot answer questions that are more appropriately answered by tax advisors, lawyers, or the Internal Revenue Service, which may include questions regarding what can and cannot be included in cost basis and whether or not certain business structures meet eligibility requirements. We also cannot confirm the eligibility for specific projects. For information about the types of eligible properties, please refer to pages 11-16 of the "Guidance" document. For specific questions about whether a property meets the eligibility requirements, please consult a tax advisor, as eligibility is generally the same as for tax credits.

Evaluating Cost Basis for Solar Photovoltaic Property

The review of applications for a 1603 payment includes a determination as to whether the applicant has properly represented and calculated its cost basis. Here is information on the process used by the 1603 team to EVALUATE COST BASIS and the principles that guide this process.

List of Awards

Here is a LIST OF AWARDS. This list is updated frequently.

Here is a STATUS OVERVIEW of the 1603 program that is updated from time-to-time.

Thank you for your interest in the 1603 program.