Conservation, Efficiency and
Environmental Protection

Renewable Energy Policy Initiatives

  • Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS):  Nineteen states and the District of Columbia have enacted an RPS standard that set minimum requirements for electric utility suppliers to produce electricity from renewable energy resources. An attempt to add a federal RPS requirement failed during final consideration of the Energy Policy Act in the summer of 2005. While additional states are considering RPS requirements, there is still an interest in enacting a uniform federal standard.
  • Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit:  The Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006recently extendedthe Energy Production Tax Credit (PTC) through the end of 2008. The PTC provides tax credits for electricity produced by facilities that use wind, closed-loop biomass, poultry waste, geothermal energy or solar energy. Half credits are available for electricity produced by facilities that use open-loop biomass, incremental hydropower, municipal solid waste (landfill gas) or small irrigation water flows.
  • Renewable Fuel Standard:  The Energy Policy Act of 2005 sets a Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The standard requires that a certain percentage of our nation's fuel supply be provided by renewable, domestic fuels. The law defines "renewable fuel" to include ethanol, biodiesel, and natural gas produced from landfills, sewage treatment plants and certain other sources." The 2006 standard is 4.0 billion gallons and it rises incrementally to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012. Most recently, the EPA solicited comments to their Notice of Proposed Rule making regarding the RFS for 2007 and beyond (71 Fed. Reg. 55,552 (Sept. 22, 2006)).
  • Renewable Energy Production Incentive (REPI): Like the PTC, this is a renewable energy production incentive for state and local governments and nonprofit electrical cooperatives. It provides 1.5 cents per kilowatt-hour of production of solar, wind, biomass (except municipal solid waste) and geothermal energy.
  • Renewable Hydrogen:  The Energy Policy Act creates a program to produce hydrogen from a variety of sources, including renewable energy and renewable fuels.

This issue brief does not represent the viewpoint of the Energy Initiative or the positions of its individual members. This summary provides merely a starting point for the working group's education and discussion of the issue. To learn more about the working groups click here.

 
Copyright 2006, The Energy Initiative.