Attempts to broaden Hawaii ethanol tax-incentive law stall

Attempts by Hawaii lawmakers to broaden the state’s tax incentive for ethanol plants to include other biofuel facilities have stalled.

The change, proposed in seven different legislative bills this year, had the potential to encourage investments in renewable-energy projects looking to produce any liquid biofuels made from local feedstocks, including biodiesel and renewable jet fuel.

All of the proposed measures appear dead as the legislative session nears its April 29 close.

The state’s existing tax credit for ethanol facilities, enacted in 2006 to help spur construction of plants, is a refundable investment credit worth 30 cents for each gallon of capacity, up to a maximum $4.5 million per facility, or 15 million gallons, once the fuel is made.

The credit took effect the same year that lawmakers enacted rules requiring most of the gasoline sold in Hawaii to contain 10 percent ethanol. Oil refiners have had to import ethanol along with oil, adding another cost to the price of fuel.

Read the full story in the Pacific Business News of Honolulu.