Rebates and tax credits

This page was checked in November 2026. It is a dated list and it will age. Where a program's own site couldn't be opened, it says so and sends you there.

8-5.1 Did the federal tax credits end?

Yes, for anything new. The IRS says of the home improvement credit: "You can claim the credit for improvements made through December 31, 2025." A heat pump installed in 2026 doesn't qualify. The residential clean energy credit is "not available for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025."

If a quote written today still lists either one, ask the seller to show you the IRS wording. For work finished in 2025, ask your tax preparer.

8-5.2 Is there still a Colorado heat pump credit?

A trade group says yes, at a lower amount in 2026, and this manual can't give you the figure. The best current text it could open comes from the Building Performance Association, a trade group and not a government office. It lists an air-source credit of $1,500, with a $499.95 minimum customer discount, for 2024 and 2025. It adds that the credit "will decrease in tax year 2026 and again in tax year 2029," and gives no new figure.

The statute section as published, C.R.S. 39-22-545, covers 10 percent of the purchase price for tax year 2023 only and is repealed effective January 1, 2028. It doesn't describe current amounts.

The trade group points readers to the Colorado Energy Office at energyoffice.colorado.gov/hptc. We couldn't open that office's pages when this was last checked, so ask it directly.

8-5.3 What about the state's rebate programs?

Their status is unconfirmed. DOE's Program Notice 26-2, effective May 29, 2026, changed its guidance for state HEEHR programs, the federal source of the money behind HEAR rebates. It doesn't state where Colorado stands. DMEA's assistance page lists a "Colorado Home Energy Rebate Program" and gives no status. Ask the Colorado Energy Office whether it's open, for whom and until when.

8-5.4 What utilities have on record

Utility programs are the part most likely to have moved, so treat every figure below as history until the utility confirms it. Which utility serves which town couldn't be confirmed, so go by the name on your bill.

DMEA (Delta-Montrose Electric Association). The rates page lists no heat pump rebate. Its rebates page offers members a free walk-through audit, and free weatherization for eligible low-income members with the Colorado Energy Office and Housing Resources of Western Colorado, which may include insulation, duct sealing and furnace replacement. It gives no rebate amounts.

Xcel Energy. These two documents are from 2024, and 2026 amounts couldn't be confirmed.

The heat pump lines come from a notice dated May 31, 2024, which says gas backup is retained unless the unit is cold climate or ground source, and limits evaporative rebates to new, permanently installed units with no portables. The others come from a sheet effective January 1, 2024.

Black Hills Energy and Grand Valley Power. We couldn't open either utility's pages when this was last checked. Ask them directly what's offered in 2026.

8-5.5 Getting it confirmed

A short paper trail protects you from a stale number, including any on this page.

1. Find the utility name on your electric bill and on your gas bill. They may differ.
2. Ask each utility and the Colorado Energy Office for the current program terms in writing, with the date they apply.
3. Ask what must happen before you buy. Some programs may need approval, a listed model or a certain installer.
4. Ask the installer to name each program in the quote, with its year and who files the paperwork.
5. Price the job as if every rebate fell through, and ask your tax preparer about any credit.