November 28, 2016
By Bill Nowack
There are more than 1,000 New York jobs at risk in the clean energy sector, and a solution overwhelmingly supported by the State Legislature is at hand. Governor Cuomo’s signature to the geothermal heat pump tax credit bill A.9925 can help avert this disaster.
Geothermal heating and cooling has been a growing industry in our state. It offers us a key to beat back climate change. Geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) cleanly and efficiently heat and cool our homes and offices without fossil fuels, using the constant temperature underground as a heat source in winter and a heat sink in summer.
Buildings consume 40% of the total energy used in New York State every day, mostly via natural gas, propane, home heating oil combustion or electrical resistance heating. Fossil fuel combustion and electricity production (via gas/coal fired power plants or nuclear facilities) have negative environmental consequences through greenhouse gas emissions, generation of toxic waste and air pollution, excessive use of water resources and harmful extraction mining. These impacts are significantly minimized by geothermal heating and cooling. Since geothermal technology uses energy stored in the ground, it is not dependent on time of day or year, and works in all weather and in every climate.
Economic benefits
In addition, this technology has a positive economic effect on the state’s utilities because it lowers the need for expensive energy infrastructure that is only needed a few days of the year when temperatures exceed 90 F and use of air conditioning spikes. When geothermal systems are installed in homes and businesses, indoor air quality improves and operational costs for heating and cooling are lowered - passing the savings on to the consumer.
A.9925/S.6249 creates important tax incentives for the development of geothermal energy systems innovative technology that uses thermal energy stored in the Earth and brings that energy into homes and businesses through a series of pumps and heat exchangers.
So why are jobs at risk? Last December, the 30% federal tax credit supporting both solar and geothermal projects was renewed through 2022 for solar, but geothermal was left out. Representative Tom Reed (R-Southern Tier) is sponsoring HR-5167 to correct that error, but despite bipartisan support, including co-sponsorship from New York Congressmen Higgins, Stefanik, Rangel, Tonko and Gibson, the success of this bill is in doubt, given Congressional gridlock.
Geothermal heating and cooling systems are New York’s best alternative for achieving net zero energy goals, but in order to promote and facilitate the technology’s growth, it deserves the same financial encouragement as other desirable energy sources like wind and solar.
How you can help
In June, the New York State Legislature stepped into this void and passed a 25% tax credit, capped at $5,000, for residential GHP installations. The combined vote on the bill in both houses was 201 to 1. In recent years, Republican Governors in Iowa and South Carolina have signed similar legislation.
Governor Cuomo has taken significant steps to create and protect energy jobs in New York. $750 million is funding the Solar City plant, with the promise of 5,000 jobs across the State. That is a crucial investment, as we need more solar and wind energy to replace fossil fuels in our electricity mix. NY-GEO estimates the geothermal heat pump tax credit will protect 1,000 current jobs held by New Yorkers at a yearly cost of $3 million. Besides protecting jobs, the cost of the credit will be offset by payroll taxes and the spinoff taxes generated by geo installations as excavators are hired, parts are bought and projects are completed.
NY-GEO urges all who care about the climate to contact Governor Cuomo at (518) 474-1041 or via email at https://www.governor.ny.gov/content/governor-contact-form and ask him to sign bill A9925, the geothermal tax credit. If you’d like postcards for your friends, neighbors, coworkers and others to sign, please send a request to nygeoinfo@gmail.com. Or you can send a message from this link on the Chapter website by clicking here.