Local Option- Renewable Energy Machinery and Tools Property Tax Exemption

HB 1297, enacted in March 2015, provides an option for the local governing body of any county, city, or town to impose a different property tax on renewable energy generating machinery and tools than other normal use machinery. The rate of property tax imposed must not exceed that is applicable to the general class of machinery and tools. Renewable energy means energy derived from sunlight, wind, falling water, biomass, sustainable or otherwise (definitions liberally constructed), energy from waste, landfill gas, municipal solid waste, wave motion, tides, or geothermal power and does not include energy derived from coal, oil, natural gas, or nuclear power. This rate of tax does not apply to machinery and tools used in generating renewable energy by qualifying co-generator or qualifying small power producer under Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA), unless the rate of tax under this section would result in a lower property tax on such machinery and tools.