Adams County commissioners on Jan. 13 asked a solar developer to produce a study focused on installing solar at the county jail and other targeted county facilities to pursue federal incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act.

Rick Anderson, a project developer giving the presentation, told the board the IRA ‘‘allows you guys to get back, 30 to 40% potentially on your investment,’’ and said that the current incentive is time-sensitive. He said a contract in place by July 1 would preserve the full available incentive. Anderson and an associate recommended focusing the initial study on the jail property because it could offer the largest near-term energy savings and has room for ground-mounted panels.

Commissioners discussed technical and financial details. Anderson estimated a solar payback ‘‘about 8 to 12 years’’ for typical installations and noted panel warranties commonly run 20 years with panel lifetimes of 25 to 30 years. County staff and commissioners asked about schedule flexibility if federal or state funding altered timelines; Anderson said a selected project could be moved up by as much as two years if funding is awarded and that he could return with preliminary materials in two weeks to a month and a deliverable suitable for county council consideration by April 1.

The presentation also covered contracting approaches. A county presenter described guaranteed performance contracting under state law, in which contractors guarantee a portion of energy savings and contracts can run up to 20 years. The presenter explained that under one example, if the project saves $1 in energy the county keeps $0.90 and the contractor refunds $0.10, and that maintenance and performance guarantees are part of the contract.

Board members encouraged a narrow initial scope to avoid delays; several said the jail appeared to be ‘‘low-hanging fruit’’ for an initial phase and asked the developer to coordinate with the sheriff's office because the project would be on land near jail operations. The board instructed staff to facilitate access to utility data and to work with the presenter on a timeline that would allow the county to act before the July 1 window if the proposal merits approval.

Next steps: the developer will assemble utility data and return with a focused proposal and cost estimate; commissioners requested materials suitable for both the commissioners and county council to review ahead of the midyear incentive deadline.