Tax Credits in the Spotlight
Wednesday, June 8, 2011 at 11:10AM
The legislature is considering how much money to allocate to tax credits for manufacturing and installing energy conservation equipment.One of the questions still lingering this session is what tax credits will survive in a time of extreme budget austerity.
Of the existing tax credits, about $40 million worth are set to expire in 2012. Legislators would have to renew tax credits this session if they wish to keep them available.
Ways and Means budget writers have set aside about $10 million in the budget for tax credits, and a Joint Committee on Tax Credits is charged with sifting through the tax credits up for renewal and choosing whether to keep, reduce or let them expire.
When the joint tax credits committee was announced, it sparked a philosophical debate: are tax credits part of revenue policy or spending policy? At the Capitol, that makes a difference because tax issues are considered in the Revenue Committee, and budget issues are considered in the Ways and Means Committee. By creating a new committee, legislators didn't have to answer that question, though the best answer is that tax credits are part of both, and that's what the new committee enables.
Business Energy Tax Credit