NCSEA’s View: Renewable Energy Tax Credit continues to have strong ROI

The recent article, “NC gave out a record $245M in energy tax breaks. Here’s who benefited.” mischaracterizes the tax credit’s achievements. By focusing only on the number of credits claimed and not the total economic impact of these projects, the recent criticism is misleading. In 2015, for example, there was over $1.7 billion in new renewable energy projects built, generating substantial amounts of new local and state tax revenues. According to a 2016 RTI International report, rural communities across North Carolina are benefiting the most from clean energy development, with 85% of all renewable energy investments valued at over $1 million occurring in the state’s rural Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties. Additionally, the RTI report found that for every $1 of the tax credit claimed, there was $1.64 in revenues returned to state and local governments.