In 2012, Brazilians were allowed to stop being just consumers of energy and become generators. Ricardo Marcelino is one of those who decided to adhere to this possibility and produce electricity from the sun. However, when he received his first electricity bill after the installation, Ricardo was surprised by the tax charge by the state on electricity he generated. “The state cannot tax me for making bread at my house, baking bread and then eating it. Likewise, it cannot collect energy tax that I generated and consumed.”
It was this realization that led him to file a lawsuit against unfair collection and to get a court order to end the ICMS charge (Tax on the Circulation of Goods and Services). This tax made the energy he produced worth 30% less than it should be. Today, some Brazilian states have already decided to end the levy of the tax on micro and mini-generation and encourage its people to harness the potential of the sun. Unfortunately, there are still states that charge the tax. If you live in one of these states, have a photovoltaic system and want to do what Ricardo did, here’s the petition he used.