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House Committee Will Markup Legislation That Includes Several Key Provisions For Public Power

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The House Ways and Means Committee on Tuesday, Sept. 14, will markup legislation that would extend and expand energy tax credits and includes several key bond provisions.

The legislation includes a number of key top priorities for the American Public Power Association (APPA), including a reinstatement of the ability to issue tax-exempt advance refunding bonds and an increase in the small-issuer exemption from $10 million to $30 million.

The bill would also allow for the issuance of taxable direct payment bonds, with a credit payment to bond issuers of 35 percent for bonds issued in 2022 through 2024, of 32 percent for bonds issued in 2025, of 30 percent for bonds issued in 2026, and 28 percent for bonds issued in 2027 and thereafter. However, credit payments to issuers would not be protected from potential budget sequestration.

Also, the bill would allow states, counties, and cities to issue tax-exempt private activity bonds to finance private construction and development of zero-emission vehicle infrastructure.

The bill would also extend expiring energy-related production tax credits (PTC) and investment tax credits (ITC), as well as the carbon capture tax credit and electric vehicle tax credits.

The ITC, PTC, and carbon capture credits also would be made available – including to public power utilities, rural electric cooperatives, and Indian tribal governments – as refundable direct payment tax credits. The investment tax credit is also expanded to include energy storage technology, qualified biogas property, and microgrid controllers.

The legislation also creates a 30 percent investment tax credit for certain electric transmission property and for zero-emissions electric power generation facilities and a production tax credit for existing nuclear facilities.