House Passes Supplemental Appropriations Bill, Restores County Share of Geothermal Revenues for 2010
On July 27, the House passed H.R.4899, the Supplemental Appropriations Bill to support U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq, which included various domestic provisions. Among these was a provision to reverse last year’s appropriations bill rider that took away the county 25% share of geothermal revenues. The bill previously passed the Senate on July 22 and the President is now expected to sign it.
The provision on geothermal revenues states, “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for fiscal year 2010 only, all funds received from sales, bonuses, royalties, and rentals under the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. §§ 1001 et seq.) shall be deposited in the Treasury, of which—(1) 50 percent shall be used by the Secretary of the Treasury to make payments to States within the boundaries of which the leased land and geothermal resources are located;(2) 25 percent shall be used by the Secretary of the Treasury to make payments to the counties within the boundaries of which the leased land or geothermal resources are located; and (3) 25 percent shall be deposited in miscellaneous receipts.”
But, this legislation only restores the country share for FY 2010. Legislation to permanently restore the 25% county share has been introduced in the House and Senate. S. 2607 was introduced in the Senate by Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) and is cosponsored by Senators Boxer, Crapo, Ensign, Feinstein, Hatch and Risch. H.R> 4060 was introduced in the House by Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA), and is cosponsored by Representatives Bishop, Chaffetz, Filner, Heller, Lummis, McKeon, Minnick, Rehberg, and Simpson.
In addition to restoring the county share, the Appropriations Bill provides $34.7 billion to support US troops in Afghanistan and Iraq and provides non-military assistance to State Department Operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. It allocates $24 billion for employment of teachers, police, and firefighters during the recession, $13 billion to Vietnam War veterans that have been exposed to Agent Orange, $2.8 billion for Haiti relief, $5.7 billion for PELL grants, $677 million to strengthen the border, $275 million for the Gulf oil spill, and $725 million for other needs.
See http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h4899/show.
House Ways and Means Committee Releases Discussion Draft of Energy/Jobs Tax Bill
The House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sander Levin (D-MI) has released a discussion draft of the energy/jobs tax bill, "The Domestic Manufacturing and Energy Jobs Act of 2010." The bill may be marked up in September and includes:
1.
Extension and enhancement of Section 48C advanced manufacturing tax credit.
2.
Extension of direct payment in lieu of production tax credit and investment tax credit program.
3.
Investment tax credit for long-term projects involving geothermal and offshore wind energy facilities.
“As the world moves toward renewable energy and a greener economy, it is necessary to accelerate a new era of American manufacturing and innovation,” Levin said in a statement. “With the U.S. government as a full, active and effective partner, the private sector can expand our green manufacturing capacity, ensuring that these jobs and products will be created in the U.S., competing globally and protecting our environment. The governments of other countries are racing ahead to dominate in this area.
“This is why the draft I am releasing today provides vital tax incentives to modernize U.S. manufacturing facilities and encourage demand of renewable energy and energy efficient products. We must not let this opportunity pass us by. I will continue to work with my colleagues in the House and Senate, as well the Administration, to enact legislation."
The draft appears to incorporate two key pieces of geothermal related legislation H.R. 4599 and H.R. 5612 both sponsored by Rep. Blumenauer (D-OR). HR 4599, the Renewable Energy Expansion Act, would allow taxpayers an election to receive a direct payment for investing in or producing specified energy property in lieu of existing energy tax credits through January 1, 2013. The legislation has 30 co-sponsors. H.R. 5612, the Geothermal Energy Investment Act of 2010, would extend through 2016 the 30% energy tax credit for investment in geothermal energy property. It has ten cosponsors. To see the full list of cosponsors of either bill, go to: http://thomas.loc.gov/
See http://waysandmeans.house.gov/press/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=11294.
Senate Abandons Climate Effort, Focuses on Oil Spill Measure
Last week Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced Democrats in the Senate did not have the 60 votes needed to continue pursuit of comprehensive climate legislation before the August recess. He said the focus would turn to a more limited energy bill targeting the oil spill.
"We've always known from Day One that to pass comprehensive energy reform you've got to have 60 votes," he said. "As we stand here today we don't have one Republican vote." Efforts to cap carbon emissions in the electric power sector could resume in the fall.
Impending EPA regulations on carbon scheduled to take effect in January could require expensive equipment to be installed at thousands of power plants across the country and could be much stricter than legislation designed by Congress; however, this failed to convince senators to support legislation.
The Senate will take up a new bill focusing on BP’s responsibility in the Gulf spill, with pressure to pass something before the August recess. The new bill will also address energy efficiency, incentives for natural gas vehicles, and will support land and water conservation.
But, that means top renewable community priorities -- extending renewable tax credits, or to establishing a national Renewable Energy Standard -- will have to wait for future legislation. The House Ways and Means Committee is already preparing to move on tax issues, possibly in September (see story below.)
See http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/2010/07/23/1/, http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/07/23/23climatewire-senate-abandons-climate-effort-dealing-blow-88864.html, and http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/110743-reid-renewable-electricity-mandate-lacks-60-votes.
Utilities, Coops, and PUDs Speak to New Geothermal Players at GEA Conference
On July 22, over 130 participants joined the Geothermal Energy Association to explore the future of utility-scale geothermal power at an industry conference held in Las Vegas.
With geothermal production expanding to 15 states, many new utilities, coops and public utility districts are considering geothermal for the first time. This conference brought together those utility-scale players who are familiar with geothermal to discuss how they have achieved success with geothermal developers and companies.
Speakers presented to an audience filled to capacity. Sessions focused on approaches and challenges for utility-scale projects in the U.S., federal and state support for utilities and renewables, risk management, transmission issues, and more.
"It was great to see many new companies and new faces at the workshop," noted Karl Gawell, GEA's Executive Director. "I was once again impressed by the dynamic change and growth occurring in the geothermal industry, and the new approaches and roles for both public and private utilities in the geothermal community."
Mayor Declares Geothermal Energy Day in Las Vegas
Mayor Oscar B. Goodman of Las Vegas issued a Proclamation declaring July 22, 2010 to be Geothermal Energy Day in conjunction with the Geothermal Energy Association’s “Geothermal Energy and Utilities, Co-ops and Public Power Workshop.” The Proclamation reads:
Whereas; the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) will be holding a one-day “Geothermal Energy and Utilities, Co-ops and Public Power Workshop” in Las Vegas that will explore the future of utility-scale geothermal power; and
Whereas; according to GEA’s recent Update on Geothermal Power Production and Development, Nevada is already a leader in geothermal power production; and
Whereas; with the abundant geothermal resource that Nevada boasts, the state has the opportunity to build an even more extensive geothermal power portfolio; and
Whereas; the growth of the geothermal industry in Nevada has been a sparkling examples of how developers can harness this resource at a large scale and make it and extremely attractive option for utilities. Geothermal is also the perfect option for utilities interested in green power; and
Whereas; GEA is a trade association composed of U.S. companies who support the expanded use of geothermal energy and are developing geothermal resources worldwide for electrical power generation and direct-heart uses; now
Therefore; I, the Mayor of the City of Las Vegas, County of Clark, State of Nevada, hereby proudly proclaim July 22, 2010 to be: Geothermal Energy Day in the City of Las Vegas and ask all citizens to welcome the attendees of this important workshop.
Congress Begins Action on FY 2011 DOE Geothermal Funding
On July 22, the Senate Appropriations Committee acted on its FY 2011 Energy and Water Appropriations Bill, which sets funding level and direction for DOE renewable energy programs. The Committee approved a report, Senate Report 111-228, which provides the details. For the DOE Geothermal Technologies Program the Committee stipulates:
“The recommendation for geothermal technology is $55,000,000, the same as the administration’s request. The Committee directs the Department to make not less than $5,000,000 available to continue development and deployment of low-temperature geothermal systems. Together, the funding provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act [ARRA] and the fiscal year 2010 and fiscal year 2011 appropriations bills reflect the Committee’s intent to fund the full range of activities authorized by Congress in 2007 in subtitle B of Public Law 110–140. The Committee expects that in future years the Department will request funding for a broad based program, and not just Enhanced Geothermal System activities. The Committee also requests that the Department provide the Committee with a copy of its report required by section 621 of Public Law 110–140 evaluating the Department’s progress implementing the geothermal provisions of Public Law 110–140 and evaluating additional advanced concepts and technologies to maximize the geothermal resource potential of the United States.”
On July 15, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water voted on its bill and report, but the details of the Subcommittee's action have not been made public. Normally appropriations bill details are not released until the full Committee votes on the legislation, which has yet to be scheduled.
Once the House and Senate act on their versions of the bill, any differences in funding or direction will need to be reconciled in future legislation. Some broad documents and a list of earmarks from the Subcommittee are available at: http://appropriations.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=694:fy11-ew-appropriations-&catid=29:energy-and-water&Itemid=134&Itemid=4.
No comments:
Post a Comment