Duke Energy and CenterPoint Energy run residential rebate programs that change year to year; verify current offers before relying on them in payback math. The federal Section 25C insulation credit terminated December 31, 2025 (OBBBA, Public Law 119-21) and does not apply in 2026.
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Cincinnati utility rebate programs are the realistic post-Section-25C path for partial cost recovery on spray foam projects. Three programs to check at the time of the project. (1) Duke Energy residential rebates. Duke serves Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky electric customers. The rebate menu changes year to year; in recent years it has included $50-$300 rebates for attic insulation upgrades, $100-$500 for whole-home weatherization packages, and occasional bonus payments for combined HVAC + insulation projects. Eligibility typically requires pre-install inspection and post-install verification by a Duke-credentialed contractor. (2) CenterPoint Energy (formerly Vectren) gas residential rebates. CenterPoint serves much of Greater Cincinnati and parts of Northern Kentucky natural gas customers. Recent program features have included weatherization rebates and HVAC tune-up incentives. (3) PACE-style assessments. Ohio has limited PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) availability compared to states like California; check with the Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance or Hamilton County Treasurer for current options. The federal Section 25C credit landscape. The OBBBA terminated Section 25C for property placed in service after December 31, 2025. There is no 2026 federal credit for spray foam insulation as of this writing. Reinstatement is plausible but not certain; Cincinnati homeowners should not plan around assumed federal credit recovery in 2026. State and county programs. Ohio currently has no large state-level residential insulation credit; this changes occasionally with legislative cycles. Hamilton, Butler, Warren, and Clermont counties do not run their own insulation rebate programs but may offer small incentives through energy-efficiency block grants. The practical Cincinnati 2026 rebate math. A typical $7,500 attic foam project might collect $200-$500 in utility rebates (Duke + CenterPoint combined), reducing net cost to $7,000-$7,300. The dominant economic case for foam remains the utility-bill savings over 4-8 years; rebates are a small bonus. Asking the installer to handle rebate paperwork as part of the project scope is standard; most Cincinnati installers have a rebate-coordination admin who manages the submissions. Verify any specific rebate offer before relying on it; the program landscape changes quarterly in some cases.