Rhone Resch, SEIA President & CEO
As industry voices continue to express opinions on the possible effects of extending or losing the solar ITC, SEIA President & CEO Rhone Resch put a jolt in the conversation with his recent email warning of upcoming ITC updates.
“I am writing to give you the latest information and to put you on the lookout for regular ITC updates over the next several weeks.
The response of our SEIA members in the face of significant head winds has been nothing short of incredible. Earlier this week, SEIA arranged for 14 solar CEOs to come in from all over the country to meet with members of the House and Senate from both parties and with administration officials to hammer home the point that we need an extension of the ITC and we need it this year.
On a daily basis, SEIA staff and lobbyists have fanned out across Capitol Hill, talking to Senators, Representatives and their staffs, carrying the ITC message. And in all of our meetings, we emphasized that the solar industry is speaking with one voice,” he said in the mass email.
Resch said he sees two possible paths forward, based on published reports and SEIA intelligence. One is a roughly $800 billion tax extenders package. He noted that negotiations among Congressional leaders and the White House continue. If some of these larger issues get resolved, such as the Child Tax Credit and provisions to protect fraud, SEIA believes that Congress will include an expansion of the ITC. This could mean anything from a multi-year extension of the ITC, to a gradual reduction over time. A second possible legislative vehicle is a tie in with legislation lifting the current ban on crude oil exports from the U.S.
“We are working closely with our champions to extract the best possible deal for the ITC if that scenario unfolds,” Resch said referring to the latter path.
Resch also warned of an alliance driven to block even the slightest of advances for solar energy on Capitol Hill. This includes the Edison Electric Institute and Sunnova’s CEO. But in his email, Resch promises SEIA is working to fight for the future of the solar industry.
“Be assured that we are taking diligent steps to address these issues on a multitude of fronts. Look for regular ITC updates, and know that we will not stand for getting lumps of coal in our stockings this year.
We are pushing with every ounce of effort to get the ITC extension approved.”
