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In October 2000, a group six county agencies, consisting of Montgomery County, Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery County Housing Opportunities Commission, Montgomery College, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, and the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, began purchasing power on a competitive basis. In March 2003, the county's energy policy was amended to incorporate the purchase of renewable energy and to expand energy-efficiency efforts.

The state of Maryland permits local governments (Md Code: Property Tax § 9-242) to offer property tax credits for high performance buildings if they choose to do so. Montgomery County has exercised this option by offering property tax credits on new or extensively modified multi-family residential and commercial buildings that meet certain high performance building standards. An "extensive modification" is defined as a structural modification that alters 50% or more of the building's square footage.

Note: As originally enacted, this program offer property tax credits for the installation of solar and geothermal energy devices in addition to energy conservation devices. In November 2011 the county enacted legislation (County Bill 28-11) terminating the program for solar and geothermal energy devices unless the taxpayer has entered a contract for costs or submitted an application on or before November 8, 2011. The change in law does not affect the sections of the law that allow property tax credits for various other energy conservation devices.

Note: The program web site listed above links to the Maryland Public Service Commission's Net Metering Working Group page, which contains a variety of information resources related to the ongoing implementation of net metering in Maryland, such as meeting agendas, minutes, and draft utility tariffs.

The Jane E. Lawton Conservation Loan Program (JELLP) takes the place of the former Community Energy Loan Program (CELP) and the Energy Efficiency and Economic Development Loan Program (EEEDLP). This program provides local governments, nonprofits, and businesses in the State with an opportunity to reduce their operating expenses by identifying and installing energy conservation improvements. It allows borrowers to use the cost savings generated by the improvements as the primary source of revenue for repaying the loans.

'''''Note: The Federal Housing Financing Agency (FHFA) issued a [http://www.fhfa.gov/webfiles/15884/PACESTMT7610.pdf statement] in July 2010 concerning the senior lien status associated with most PACE programs. In response to the FHFA statement, most local PACE programs have been suspended until further clarification is provided. '''''

Similar to Maryland's [http://www.dsireusa.org/library/includes/incentive2.cfm?Incentive_Code=M... Local Option Property Tax Credit for Renewable Energy], Title 9 of Maryland's property tax code creates an optional property tax credit for high performance buildings.

Title 9 of Maryland’s property tax code provides local governments the option to allow a property tax credit for buildings equipped with a solar, geothermal or qualifying energy conservation device. These devices may be used to heat or cool the structure, to generate electricity to be used in the structure, or to provide hot water for use in the structure. The law was initially enacted in 1985, but at that time applied only to heating and cooling and water heating applications. Electricity production for on-site use was added in 2006.

Maryland’s 1999 electric utility restructuring legislation requires all electric companies and electricity suppliers to provide customers with details regarding the fuel mix and emissions of electric generation. Emissions data must be expressed in terms of pounds per megawatt-hour (MWh). This information must be provided to customers every six months and annually to the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC). Past reports are available in Case No.

The Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) offers rebates of $3,000 for residential geothermal heat pump systems and up to $4,500 for non-residential geothermal heat pump systems. The residential program offers a flat per system incentive ($3,000) for systems with up to 10 tons of refrigeration capacity (1 ton is equivalent to 12,000 BTUs). The non-residential program offers $180 per ton for systems of less than 25 tons and $90 per ton for systems from 25 - 50 tons. It is important to note that these system size/capacity ranges are exclusive, not additive in nature.