Energy Tax Alert: Congress Extends Renewable Energy Credits

Congress this week passed the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014, which extends a number of expired or expiring tax provisions through the end of 2014. The President is expected to sign the Act soon. The Act renews several energy-related tax provisions, including the production tax credit under Section 45 of the Internal Revenue Code (PTC) for certain renewable energy facilities. In the case of wind, geothermal, landfill gas, trash, marine, and hydrokinetic facilities and certain closed-loop biomass, open-loop biomass, and qualified hydropower facilities, a taxpayer will be eligible to claim the PTC if construction begins before January 1, 2015. The Act also extends Section 48(a)(5)(C), which allows a taxpayer to claim the investment tax credit in lieu of the PTC with respect to the facilities listed above if construction begins before January 1, 2015.

The Act also extends through 2014 a number of additional energy-related provisions, including credits for nonbusiness qualified energy efficiency improvements and residential energy property expenditures, electricity produced by Indian coal facilities, and new energy-efficient homes, and the deduction for energy-efficient commercial building property in Section 179D.

If you have any questions regarding these extensions or any other energy-related provisions of the Act, please contact one your Stoel Rives attorney or one of the key contributors.