Tax fix sought for energy programs in Ohio

State Sen. Chris Widener hears a clock ticking when it comes to Ohio’s chances of sparking its fledgling renewable energy industry.

Saying some windows of prime federal funding for solar and wind power projects will close by year-end, the Republican from Springfield is hoping for speedy action on his bill that would make Ohio’s tax code more friendly to such projects. Introduced Feb. 24, Senate Bill 232 would allow builders of renewable energy facilities, including solar installations and wind farms, to pay an annual fee on their power generating capacity instead of the state’s costlier tangible personal property tax on machinery and equipment owned by public utilities.

Long viewed as an impediment to business development in Ohio, the tangible personal property tax was eliminated for most businesses in 2009 as part of a tax reform package approved by the legislature in 2005. But the tax remains in place for public utilities.

The change proposed by S.B. 232 would require renewable energy facilities to pay an annual fee of $6,000 per megawatt of generated electricity for the life of the facility. The tangible personal property tax for a large-scale wind farm could rise above $40,000 per megawatt in the first year before depreciation allowances start kicking in.

Read the full story in Business First of Columbus.