South Dakota Lawmakers About to Pull Plug on Llittle-Used Renewable-Energy Tax Break

The House Taxation Committee gave its blessing Thursday to taking away a seldom-used tax break that was meant to encourage renewable energy production.

The irony was the committee’s chairman, Rep. Brock Greenfield, became a little less relevant. He shepherded the law to passage in 2002.

For Greenfield, R-Clark, the law’s original passage was a substantial victory 12 years ago. Then-Gov. Bill Janklow fought against adding tax loopholes.

How blue state policy is greening up red states too

Increasingly, red states are also benefitting from the development of local renewable energy to meet renewable energy standards (RES) in blue states.

A legislative task force in very red state South Dakota recently proposed changes favoring wind farm construction (tip from regular reader Bob Wallace). Coal rich and empty, South Dakota has no RES requiring renewable energy, and little local demand for new energy, but the task force was concerned that much lower taxes on wind farms to encourage renewable energy development in neighboring windy states led to South Dakota being out-competed for wind farm development.