3EStrategies is here to assist municipalities and counties across Oregon in rapidly implementing renewable energy, weatherization and sustainable transportation projects funded by the American Recovery and Revitalization Act stimulus package.
American Recovery and Revitalization Act
ARRA
3EStrategies has compiled an overview of the amount and types of funds and incentives that would come to Oregon for clean energy-related projects through the ARRA. This information is provided below:
| KEY DOCUMENT DOWNLOADS: | KEY WEBSITE RESOURCES: |
Federal ARRA website: |
|
2. ARRA Stimulus--What it means for Oregon
|
Oregon ARRA website: www.oregon.gov/recovery |
3. ARRA Stimulus--Green Jobs Funding Overview--
|
Note: The ARRA information is evolving rapidly. The information below provides the details known as of April 1st, 2009
Transportation
The ARRA provides the following funds for transportation related projects in Oregon:
Roads and Bridges:
Oregon will receive about 1.16% of the $29 billion, which is about $334 million; 30% of the highway program funds will go to cities and counties for a total of $100 million leaving approximately $224 million for state projects around the state.
Contact: Travis Brouwer, Oregon Department of Transportation
Email: travis.brouwer@state.or.us
Phone: (503) 986-3448
http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/economic_stimulus.shtml
Multi-modal Transportation:
More than $9 billion was provided for passenger rail, including $8 billion that is available for grants to states for high-speed passenger rail corridors. Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) partners with the Washington State DOT and Amtrak to operate the Cascades Amtrak service on the Northwest high-speed rail corridor, which runs from Eugene through Portland and Seattle on to Vancouver, British Columbia and is one of the nation’s top passenger rail corridors in terms of ridership. ODOT will seek a federal investment from the stimulus program to improve the speed and reliability of passenger rail service on the corridor and build capacity to allow for the eventual addition of a third daily roundtrip train between Eugene and Portland. ODOT will work with partners to develop proposals for funding for discretionary grants distributed US DOT for port, rail, transit, and highway projects.
Contact: Kelly Taylor, Oregon Department of Transportation
Email: kelly.c.taylor@state.or.us
Phone: (503) 986-4125
Public Transit:
Oregon's urban transit districts in Portland, Eugene/Springfield, Salem/Keizer, Medford, Longview, Corvallis, and Bend will receive about $65.9 million in formula funds for capital needs such as bus purchases, facilities, and bus shelters. Tri-Met will also receive about $1.1 million under the fixed guide way modernization program for work on the MAX system. ODOT's Public Transit Division administers funding for non-urbanized areas and will distribute about $14.6 million to rural transit projects.
Contact: Michael Ward, Oregon Department of Transportation
Email: michael.r.ward@state.or.us
Phone: (503) 986-3413
Energy Efficiency – Renewable Energy
The following funds for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects will be available in Oregon.
Weatherization Assistance Programs:
Oregon will receive $39.3 million to help low-income families reduce their energy costs by weatherizing their homes. Funds are provided based on an on-site energy audit and cost-effective guidelines. The expanded program includes households at or below 200% of federal poverty guidelines. The maximum allowance per household has been increased from $2,500 to $6,500.
Contact: John Fletcher, Oregon Housing and Community Services
(503) 986-6700
State Energy Grant Program:
Oregon will receive $42 million for energy efficiency and conservation projects. The Oregon Department of Energy is awaiting guidelines from the U.S. Department of Energy on project eligibility.
Contact: Diana Enright or Betty Merrill
Phone: (503) 378-4040
www.egov.oregon.gov/ENERGY/ODOE
(Individuals can sign up to receive email updates at this Web address.)
Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program:
Oregon will receive $34.9 million for the block grant program. The ARRA legislation requires that 68% of these dollars go directly to Oregon’s ten largest cities and counties, 28% to smaller cities and counties, 2% for tribes, and 2% to be competitively awarded.
Contact: Diana Enright or Betty Merrill
Phone: (503) 378-4040
www.egov.oregon.gov/ENERGY/ODOE
(Individuals can sign up to receive email updates at this Web address.)
Energy Saving Tax Incentives for Homeowners:
Oregon homeowners will have access to incentives to make their homes more energy efficient. The bill continues and expands federal tax credits for purchases of new furnaces, energy-efficient windows and doors, or insulation. The bill also provides a tax credit of up to $7,500 for families that purchase plug-in hybrid vehicles to promote the move to zero-emission vehicles.
Modernization of the Power Grid:
The Bonneville Power Administration received $246 million to modernize the electricity power grid serving Oregon. This work will not only create jobs, but it will also make the power grid more energy efficient and reliable. Businesses interested in learning more about the grid modernization efforts should contact the U.S. Department of Energy directly.
Federal contact: U.S. Department of Energy
www.energy.gov/recovery/index.htm
Workforce Training Funds
In addition to the funds available directly for energy efficiency, renewable energy and transportation projects, ARRA provides a number of funding opportunities for green jobs training programs. These include:
• Workforce Investment Act training & employment services: $36.3 million (in Oregon).
Provides funding for job training, including state grants for adults, youth and dislocated workers. Additional money is available for community service
employment for low-income seniors.
• Green Jobs Act (discretionary grants): $500M (total US)
• 6% of highway funding states receive may be used for workforce training
• Smart Grid Program: $100 million for training (total US)
• Summer Youth Program: Amount unknown at time of publishing.
Additional Federal Level ARRA Funds and Incentive Programs
Energy Saving Tax Incentives and Grants for Businesses:
The bill includes a three-year extension of the popular federal production tax credit (PTC) for electricity derived from wind (through 2012) and for electricity derived from biomass, geothermal, hydropower, landfill gas, waste-to-energy, and marine facilities (through 2013). Many renewable energy companies in Oregon use this tax credit to build renewable energy production facilities.
The Senate provision (Sec. 1102)
As a temporary alternative to the PTC, facilities that are placed in service in by 2012 (for wind) and 2013 (for other renewable technologies) will be allowed to choose a 30% investment tax credit (ITC) in place of the production credit.
There also is a new federal manufacturing tax credit for investment in advanced energy facilities, such as facilities that manufacture components for the production of renewable energy, advanced battery technology, and other innovative next-generation green technologies.
Federal contact: U.S. Department of Energy
www.energy.gov/recovery/index.htm
State and Local Bonds Program
ARRA authorizes $2.4 billion of Energy Conservation Bonds (ECBs) to finance state, municipal and tribal government programs, greenhouse gas reduction initiatives, and loans and grants to implement green community programs.
State and local governments can issue the bonds for a broad range of purposes that include capital expenditures to reduce energy use in publicly owned buildings by at
least 20%; implementing green community programs; rural development involving electricity production from renewables; research facilities and grants for the development of cellulosic ethanol or other nonfossil fuels; technologies to capture and sequester carbon dioxide produced by fossil fuel use; increasing the efficiency of technologies for producing nonfossil fuels; automobile battery technologies and other technologies to reduce fossil fuel use in transportation, or technologies to reduce energy use in buildings; mass commuting facilities that reduce energy use (including pollution reduction for vehicles used for mass commuting); demonstration projects that promote commercialization of green building technology; conversion of agricultural waste
for fuel production; advanced battery manufacturing technologies; technologies to reduce peak electricity demand; technologies that capture and sequester carbon dioxide emitted from fossilfuel-fired power facilities; and public education campaigns to promote energy efficiency.
.
ARRA increases the for home energy improvements such as fans, furnaces, boilers and shell improvements to 30% of incremental cost and removes caps on those credits through the end of 2010.
ARRA increases the tax credit for the installation of retail and residential alternative refueling systems. Credit is 50% for ethanol, natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas, but 30% for hydrogen. Credit caps are $50,000 for retail systems and $2,000 for residential. For hydrogen, the credit limit is raised to $200,000.
ARRA established a tax credit for the purchase of new plug-in vehicles (plug-in
hybrids and pure electric vehicles). The credit is based on the battery capacity of the vehicle, and is capped at $7,500 for light-duty vehicles and up to $15,000 for the heaviest vehicles. When total U.S. sales of vehicles eligible for the credit reaches 200,000 per manufacturer, the credit begins to phase out.
ARRA establishes a credit of up to $2,500 for low-speed four-wheeled vehicles, as well as two- and three-wheeled electric vehicles. It also establishes a credit of up to $4,000 for the conversion of an existing vehicle to battery power. ARRA also allows taxpayers otherwise subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) to claim plug-in credit (as well as other alternative fuel and advanced vehicle credits).