Renewable Energy News Briefs - January 2021

A bipartisan bill introduced Nov. 12, 2020, in the House of Representatives would make the renewable energy investment tax credit (ITC) temporarily refundable for projects that break ground by the end of 2021 and would extend the ITC phasedown by one year. The Solar Jobs Preservation Act of 2020 is intended to offset the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on solar development. Under the legislation, the ITC would phase down to 10% by Jan. 1, 2025, a year later than under current law. The legislation is sponsored by Rep. Mike Levin, D-California, and Rep. Dave Schweikert, R-Arizona.

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A private letter ruling (PLR) from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Nov. 13, 2020, states that a company is not a public utility company, since it provides a percentage of renewable energy generated through long-term solar energy service agreements for solar photovoltaic systems on the customer’s premises that are owned by the company. In PLR 202046007, the IRS ruled that since the customer is entitled to a percentage of the energy generated in exchange for a monthly fee, the company is not a public utility property under the meaning of three requirements of the Internal Revenue Code Section 168(i)(10). The IRC identifies public utility properties as those where rates are determined on a rate-of-return basis. The ruling concludes that the company is therefore not subject to the regulatory jurisdiction of any state or federal regulatory body. The PLR is directed only for the taxpayer that requested it.