Have you considered using the $500 per-person state energy conservation tax credit to help pay for new windows or insulation? Have you been thinking of installing solar panels or a small wind turbine? Well, think twice. Montana’s energy conservation and renewable energy laws are under attack at the Montana Legislature, but with your calls and emails, we have a chance to turn the tide.
Stick up for our conservation tax credits
SB 253, carried by Sen. Bob Lake (R-Hamilton), would eliminate the Energy Conservation and Alternative Energy income tax credits. In the last tax year alone, Montanans claimed $9.5 million in tax credits for things like insulation, solar panels, or an efficient new heating system. That’s money that was invested in our local economy and is paying back with construction jobs and energy savings.
The bill recently passed out of the Senate Taxation committee and will be voted on by the full Senate very soon. Please take action! Ask your Senator to vote NO on SB 253.
- Leave a message for your Senator by calling 444-4800.
- Send a note using this online form.
Turn back the attack on small renewable energy
SB 226, carried by Sen. Jason Priest (R-Red Lodge), pulls the rug out from under the vibrant small renewable energy industry and discourages crucial efforts to increase locally owned, clean energy supplies. This bill unfairly burdens independent renewable energy producers with new charges. Under the guise of removing a “subsidy” that doesn’t actually exist, the bill lowers the credit net metered customer generators will receive for the energy they produce.
The bill narrowly passed the full Senate and is scheduled for a hearing in the House Federal Relations, Energy & Telecommunications Committee on Monday, March 21 at 3:00pm. Please contact this committee and tell them to vote NO on SB 226.
You can find help looking up your Senator or Representative at this website. Thank you!
The Billings Gazette published an opinion piece March 16 submitted by Jim Baerg, Freda Wilkinson, and Len Ford that highlights three bills moving through the Montana Legislature that will eliminate important incentives for energy efficiency.
The authors concluded their letter by saying:
“As businesses in Montana’s construction and real estate industry, we hope the Legislature and the governor can see the wisdom in supporting a vibrant and innovative building industry that provides good-paying jobs, makes housing affordable, and helps to build our energy independence.”
Read the full piece at the Billings Gazette website.
Jim is a member of AERO’s Board of Directors and runs Montana Energy+Design in Livingston. Freda is a real estate broker and AERO member from Helena. Len operates a home construction business in Kalispell.
A few weeks ago, House Bill 542 narrowly passed the Montana House of Representatives. Thanks to constituent calls and emails, the bill was hotly debated on the House Floor and almost died there. Now, we need to make sure the bill dies in the Senate. If you can take 5 minutes to let your voice be heard today, we’ve got a good shot while it’s in the Senate Local Government Committee.
If passed, HB 542 would take away the rights of a local community to consider the impacts a new subdivision has on agriculture — including the permanent loss of agricultural land and the erosion of a community’s agricultural integrity. In short, this revision will accelerate unchecked developments across Montana’s farming and ranching communities for years to come.
We cannot let hasty development patterns trample Montana’s agricultural legacy. That’s why we need you to contact members of the Senate Local Government Committee today.
1. Please send a quick email to the entire Committee by copying and pasting the following email addresses:
2. Please concisely tell them to oppose HB 542, because:
- Agriculture is too important to simply disregard. Do we no longer care about our #1 industry?
- A subdivision’s impacts to agriculture simply need to be considered at the local level. This ensures everyone’s property rights and the public interests are protected through a non-arbitrary, democratic process.
- Montanan’s value working farms and ranches, and we want to pass on a productive agricultural legacy. That means jobs, business, and revenue.
3. Please call a few senators on the Local Government Committee, who are from a district near you:
- Edward Buttrey (R – Great Falls): 750-6798
- Shannon Augare (D – Browning): 450-5686
- Alan Olson (R – Roundup): 320-1385
- Lynda Moss (D – Billings): 252-7318 or 248-1114
- Art Wittich (R – Bozeman): 599-9836
- Steve Gallus (D – Butte): 494-3914
- Gene Vuckovich: (D – Anaconda): 560-2313
- Bruce Tutvedt (R – Kalispell): 257-9732 or 253-9732
- Jon Sonju (R – Kalispell): 270-7113
4. If possible, please drop Paul Hubbard at the Community Food and Agriculture Coalition a note to let him know your calls and emails were placed: pfhubbard@gmail.com
For more information, you can read the entire bill here.
Please do not hesitate to contact Paul Hubbard at 543-0542, if you have any questions about this bill’s attempt to throw agriculture under the bus in exchange for unchecked subdivisions. Of course, if any of you could come to Helena to testify at the public hearing on March 14, that would make a huge impact.
Thanks for speaking out!
In the next few days the House of Representatives will be voting on HB 207 and we need your help.
This legislation supports Montana’s network of Food & Agriculture Development Centers, which provide crucial business development services to Montana’s value-added food and farm-derived renewable energy entrepreneurs. The Food & Agriculture Development Centers are filling a critical role in establishing the entrepreneurial support system necessary to actually build the food production, processing, and distribution infrastructure needed to localize Montana’s food system and support the development and use of farm-derived renewable energy.
HB 207 just went through the Appropriations Committee and now needs a strong vote of support on the House Floor. Please contact your Representatives and urge them to vote YES on HB 207 – Montana’s Food & Agriculture Development Centers.
Please take 5 minutes to tell your Representatives:
- The Food & Agriculture Development Centers are part of an effective economic development strategy to help retain in-state the value that is added to Montana’s agricultural products.
- In its first year, the modest annual cost of the program has been leveraged nearly 40-fold into $9.3 million in grants, loans and investments for Montana businesses that the centers helped acquire.
- Collectively, the centers have served 100 new and existing businesses, and helped to create or retain over 130 jobs.
You can contact Representatives in three easy ways:
1) Call (406) 444-4800 to leave a message.
2) Send a written message using this online form.
3) Click here to find any Montana State Representatives using zip codes, and contact them directly.
Please contact Kevin Moore (406) 443-7272 for more information about HB 207 and the Montana Food & Agriculture Development Centers.
Tax credits and a loan program used by hundreds of homeowners and businesses to help finance small scale renewable energy, are under attack at the Montana Legislature. Please take a few minutes to contact key Legislators about these two bad bills.
1) HB 424: Removes funding stream for Alternative Energy Revolving Loan Program (Rep. Austin Knudsen, R-Culbertson) The Alternative Energy Revolving Loan Program, operated by the Dept. of Environmental Quality, finances renewable energy projects and energy efficiency measures on homes and businesses across the state. The revolving loan program fills a unique niche ignored by the commercial lending market, and has played an important role in both creating new clean energy jobs and helping to build our state’s supply of homegrown, renewable energy. Each year new funding for the revolving loan program is secured in the form of penalties on air quality permit violations. This bill would redirect those air quality violations to the general fund and cap the growth of this loan program. Please contact House Appropriations committee members (see list below) and urge them to oppose HB 424.
2) SB 253: Eliminates efficiency and renewable energy tax credits (Sen. Bob Lake, R-Hamilton) In the last tax year, more nearly $10 million was claimed in income tax credits for energy conservation, biodiesel, and clean renewable energy systems. The tax credits were used for things like insulation, new windows, and home power systems. It is clear that these tax credits are working to incentivize investments that will pay dividends for years to come in the form of energy savings, increased property value, and Montana jobs. This bill would strip out these popular tax credits along with credits for recycling businesses, geothermal heating systems, and historical preservation. Please contact Senate Taxation committee members (see list at bottom) and urge them to oppose SB 253.
To contact legislators:
a) Use the email addresses below; or
b) Call 406-444-4800 to leave a message for legislators; or
c) Click here to email legislators using an online form.
House Appropriations Committee (contact regarding HB 424)
Walter McNutt walt@midrivers.com
Duane Ankney goodwind.duane@gmail.com
Randy Brodehl brodehl@centurytel.net
Tom Burnett tburnetthd63@hotmail.com
Rob Cook robc_hd27@itbusa.com
Mike Cuffe mike@mcuffe.com
Champ Edmunds champ.edmunds@yahoo.com
Ron Ehli montanamutt@montana.com
John Esp johnesp2001@yahoo.com
Steve Gibson stevedgibson52@gmail.com
Roy Hollandsworth hgrain@3rivers.net
Ryan Osmundson ryanosmundson@gmail.com
Don Roberts (no email)
Jon C Sesso jonsesso@yahoo.com
Bill McChesney macwilly66@msn.com
Galen Hollenbaugh galen@hollenbaugh.org
Robert (Bob) Mehlhoff rmehlhoff@yahoo.com
Trudi Schmidt trudischmidt@q.com
Tony Belcourt tbelcourt@hotmail.com
Cynthia Hiner matthiner@hotmail.com
Bill Beck rep.bbeck@centurytel.net
Senate Taxation Committee (contact regarding SB 253)
Bruce Tutvedt tutvedt@montanasky.us
Bob Lake lakemill@montana.com
Ron Arthun ronarthun@gmail.com
Gary Branae garybranae@gmail.com
Ron Erickson ron.senate@gmail.com
Jeff Essmann jessmann@mt.gov
Christine Kaufmann kaufmann@mt.net
Jim Peterson jimpetersonranch@gmail.com
Kendall Van Dyk kvandyk@mt.gov
Chas Vincent cvvincent@hotmail.com
Art Wittich senatorwittich@montana.com
Kim Gillan glonky@aol.com
