The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on November 24 released the 2009-2010 Priority Guidance Plan, which contains 315 projects that are scheduled for completion from July 2009 through June 2010. According to the plan, the IRS plans to publish: guidance concerning the credit for production from advanced nuclear power facilities under Section 45J; and guidance relating to the reimbursement of the costs of specified energy property under section 1603 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act of 2009, including guidance regarding the interplay of section 1603 with sections 45 and 48 of the Internal Revenue Code.

On November 20, Rep. Betsy Markey, D-Colo., and Rep. Erik Paulsen, R-Minn., introduced H.R. 4149 the Renewable Electricity Integration Tax Credit Act. The bill would provide a tax credit for utilities to integrate more wind and solar into their energy portfolios. Supporters say the Renewable Electricity Integration Tax Credit Act would relieve the burden faced by utilities bringing intermittent renewable energy like wind and solar online, and help bring down the cost of clean energy production. The measure takes into account any additional costs for ramping baseload plants up and down to accommodate intermittent wind and solar, adding quick-start natural gas generation to serve as a backup when wind and solar are not available, and investing in projects to store renewable electric power. The bill would create a tax credit for utilities that have sizeable portfolios of renewable energy generation, ranging from 0.1/cent per kilowatt-hour to 0.6/cent per kilowatt-hour if wind and solar make up 4 percent and 24 percent of electricity production, respectively. H.R. 4149 was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. A copy of the measure can be found online at www.energytaxcredits.com.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) released a study in December concluding that proximity to wind energy facilities does not have a pervasive or widespread adverse effect on the property values of nearby homes. The study’s authors collected data on almost 7,500 sales of single-family homes situated within 10 miles of 24 existing wind facilities in nine different states. LBNL says the conclusions of the study are drawn from eight different hedonic pricing models, as well as both repeat sales and sales volume models. The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) issued a statement by AWEA CEO Denise Bode following the release, which called the study’s findings “good news for those communities that might be considering the location of wind farms nearby.” A copy of the study can be found online at www.energytaxcredits.com.

On November 17, Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., introduced H.R. 4085, the companion legislation to the Solar Manufacturing Jobs Creation Act, S. 2755, which was introduced in the Senate on November 9 by Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J. Under the Solar Manufacturing Jobs Creation Act, equipment and facilities used to manufacture solar power technology would be added to the eligible property list for the investment tax credit. The bills would also make the 30 percent investment tax credit for equipment and facilities permanent. Rep. Thompson is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee. The committee’s ranking member, Rep. Dave Camp, and Reps. Lloyd Doggett, Linda Sanchez and Pat Tiberi are among the bill’s 14 co-sponsors. Upon introduction the bill was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means and the Committee on Energy and Commerce. A copy of the Solar Manufacturing Jobs Creation Act can be found online at www.energytaxcredits.com.

On November 23, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Steven Chu announced the selection of Clemson University to receive as much as $45 million under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for a wind energy test facility that will enhance the performance, durability and reliability of utility-scale wind turbines. The Large Wind Turbine Drivetrain Testing facility will enable the United States to expand development and testing of large-scale wind turbine drive-train systems domestically. DOE says that wind turbine sizes have increased with each new generation of turbines, and have outgrown the capacity of existing U.S. drive-train testing facilities. The new facility will be located at the Charleston Naval Complex, a former Navy base in North Charleston, S.C., and will be a part of the Clemson University Restoration Institute campus.