Nebraska veteran secures resilience through solar
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Just south of Omaha in Cass County, Nebraska, Air Force veteran Randy Davis has been settling into retirement, raising chickens and establishing a garden on his 1910 homestead. The area offers the pace of life he’s after, but requires he contends with an unstable rural electric grid prone to outages caused by harsh weather. In February 2025, Randy completed a solar installation to provide security and resilience for his family.
High winds and ice storms can damage the area’s above-ground power lines and leave him to endure days-long outages. “The last one, we had 100-mile-an-hour winds, and for about six days we were out [of power],” said Randy. When his utility begins restoring service, as a single rural customer on a dedicated transmission line, he is often last in the queue. Seeking an alternative to running a backup generator for a week at a time, he set his sights on solar.
Randy installed a 19.25-kilowatt system on the roof of his barn, paired with a battery backup. When the system produces more energy than his property needs, the excess charges the batteries, which he can draw on if the power goes out. The upfront price was $75,000, but he was able to significantly lower his cost through the solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC).
The ITC allows solar owners to deduct up to 30% of a solar system’s cost, including batteries, from their federal income taxes. The tax credit was a key factor in Randy’s decision to go solar, as he was expecting a higher-than-average tax bill upon selling some assets. By taking the credit, he could manage that tax bill to his advantage, while also gaining energy independence. “I was able to switch those tax costs into a solar generating system that benefits us,” he explained. Randy will be able to roll any unused portion of the credit over to the next tax year to secure the maximum savings of $22,500.
Solar will provide Randy with reliability, addressing the risks posed by service interruptions and helping to create a balanced mix of energy sources he can draw on to keep his property running. It was an investment he could make now to achieve peace of mind instead of waiting for an upgrade to underground power lines. “That’s not going to happen in the near future,” he explained. “The risk factor is … also the driver along with that credit.”
Randy is excited to be generating his own power and sees solar as an important component of his rural community’s energy future. “If you have point-of-use electricity at houses, that can reduce the burden on the current grid,” he explained. By decentralizing power production, rural homeowners and agricultural producers can support their own needs. During periods of overproduction, the excess electricity they produce flows back to the grid to help meet local demand. In return, solar owners earn compensation through a policy called net metering. This reduces the need for additional expensive electric grid infrastructure, lowering utility costs for everyone.
For more Nebraskans like Randy to benefit from the self-sufficiency and savings solar offers, continued access to programs like the ITC will be essential. Making solar more affordable empowers homeowners to take control of their energy needs and safeguard their families from rising energy costs and grid disruptions.
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