ARLINGTON, Va. – National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) CEO Jim Matheson issued the following statement on the inclusion of energy tax extenders in the Senate’s government funding proposal:
“We’re pleased the Senate agreed to include key energy tax provisions in the latest government funding bill. These tax credits enable electric cooperatives to keep current and future costs down for consumers by promoting energy efficiency and a diverse fuel mix.”
Geothermal heat pumps can cut home heating and cooling bills by up to 70 percent. More than 40 percent of cooperatives across the country have used geothermal tax credits to make highly-efficient geothermal heat pumps affordable for their members. These systems can also reduce costs for the entire co-op membership by reducing the need to buy electricity on the market during periods of peak use.
Changes to the nuclear production tax credit (PTC) will extend the deadline by which new nuclear plants must be operating to qualify for the tax credit, and will for the first time extend the value of the PTC to electric co-ops, enabling both cooperatives and municipal utilities to realize cost savings that will be passed on to members. While the Treasury Department allocates PTCs to all partners on a pro-rata ownership basis, the not-for-profit cooperative and municipal entities cannot directly use the credits because they are exempt from federal income taxes.
America’s electric cooperatives are engaged in research on technologies that can reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion. The carbon capture tax credit represents a critical investment in research that will help ensure a diverse fuel supply and could lead to important technology innovations. Currently, two generation and transmission cooperatives are collaborating with researchers at a Wyoming test center that serves as a proving ground for finalists in the Carbon Capture XPRIZE competition.
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association is the national service organization that represents the nation’s more than 900 not-for-profit, consumer-owned electric cooperatives, which provide service to 42 million people in 47 states.
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