Scientific group says home solar boom likely in U.S.

In over half of U.S. states, the cost of rooftop solar electricity could be on par with local electricity prices by 2017, according to analysis by the Union of Concerned Scientists. UCS estimates that with rapid declines in the cost of panels and installations, homes in 11 states plus the District of Columbia can use a federal tax credit and financing to make electricity cheaper than they buy it. Seventeen more states are within three years of this tipping point, they say. Thus, growth in home solar generation is likely to be robust.

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