Amended in Senate June 19, 2015

Senate Joint ResolutionNo. 10


Introduced by Senator Stone

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(Coauthors: Senators Bates and Gaines)

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(Coauthors: Assembly Members Baker and Linder)

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May 22, 2015


Senate Joint Resolution No. 10—Relative to Federal Investment Tax Credit.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SJR 10, as amended, Stone. Federal Investment Tax Credit: solar energy.

This measure would respectfully request that the Congress of the United States take immediate action to extend the federal investment tax credit in Sections 48 and 25D of Title 26 of the United States Code.

Fiscal committee: no.

P1    1WHEREAS, The United States has an abundance of solar energy
2resourcesbegin insert that areend insert sufficient to supply a significant portion of the
3energy needs of the United States; and

4WHEREAS, Farmers can become more economically resilient
5to the unique and difficult challenges facing farming communities
6through solar power; and

7WHEREAS, Schools and educational institutions, as well as
8other governmental entities and nonprofit entities, can save
9considerable amounts of limited public moneys by investing in
10solar power; and

P2    1WHEREAS, Homeowners, renters, and businesses statewide
2can control for rising energy costs through the investment in solar
3power; and

4WHEREAS, Rural communities can benefit from the
5construction of utility scale solar energy projects; and

6WHEREAS, All these markets rely on the federal investment
7tax credit to make solar energy affordable for all who want it; and

8WHEREAS, The solar energy industry employs 54,000
9Californians and is one of the nation’s fastest growing job creators,
10employing 173,807 people nationwide and growing at a rate nearly
1120 times faster than the overall economy, according to The Solar
12Foundation; and

13WHEREAS, The loss of the investment tax credit would lead
14to significant job losses in California and beyond in 2017; and

15WHEREAS, Accelerated development and use of solar energy
16technologies would provide numerous benefits to all citizens of
17California and the United States, including improved national
18security, healthier rural economies, improved air and environmental
19quality, and abundant, reliable, and affordable energy; and

20WHEREAS, The solar industry adds more than $15 billion to
21the United States economy and increased energy production from
22domestic solar energy resources would attract substantial new
23investments in energy infrastructure and create local economic
24growth; and

25WHEREAS, Increased use of solar energy is practical and can
26be cost effective with the help of consistent, long-term supportive
27policies and proper incentives to stimulate markets and
28infrastructure, such as the Investment Tax Credit; and

29WHEREAS, Long-term supportive policies and proper
30incentives at the local, state, and federal levels have brought about
31significant cost reductions within the solar industry in California
32and across the country; and

33WHEREAS, Public policies aimed at enhancing solar energy
34production and accelerating technological improvements will
35further reduce energy costs over time and increase market demand;
36and

37WHEREAS, The federal investment tax credit for solar power,
38contained in Sections 48 and 25D of Title 26 of the United States
39Code, is set to decrease from 30 percent to 10 percent for
40commercial consumers and from 30 percent to 0 percent for
P3    1residential consumers after December 31, 2016; now, therefore,
2be it

3Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of
4California, jointly,
That the Legislature respectfully requests that
5the Congress of the United States take immediate action to extend
6the federal investment tax credit in Sections 48 and 25D of Title
726 of the United States Code; and be it further

8Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
9this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United
10States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the
11Majority Leader of the Senate, and to each Senator and
12Representative from California in the Congress of the United
13States.



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