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Supporting campuses in navigating the Inflation Reduction Act
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) Community of Practice (CoP) is a group of campuses and service providers exploring the opportunities within the IRA and similar federal funding provisions (IIJA and BIL) supported by Second Nature. The group meets monthly to learn and share insight regarding technical assistance in the assessment, application, and funding reception stages of the grant processes.
Contact: Theo Daniels, Policy Manager
[email protected]
The IRA offers credits for Clean Hydrogen, Advanced Manufacturing Production, Nuclear Power Production, Production for Electricity from Renewables, Clean Electricity Production, Energy Investment, Clean Electricity Investment, Advanced Energy Project, Qualified Commercial Clean Vehicles, Alternative Fuel Vehicle Refueling Property, Biodiesel and Renewable Diesel, Alternative Fuels, Second-Generation Biofuel Incentives, Clean Fuel Production, Sustainable Aviation Fuel, Carbon Oxide Sequestration, Energy Efficient Commercial Buildings Deduction, Cost Recovery for Qualified Facilities, Property, and Energy Storage Technology.
College campuses can utilize the direct (or elective) pay option, allowing tax-exempt entities such as colleges and universities to receive direct payments from the IRS for qualifying clean energy projects. Around twelve projects are eligible for direct pay including ITC and PTC clean energy and electricity investments and production. With this provision, typically 30% of project costs are covered, but bonuses exist to provide more funding.
The Energy Community Tax Credit Bonus applies a bonus of up to 10% for PTC and 10 percentage points for ITC projects, facilities, and technological developments located in energy communities. These are outlined in Section 45, 48, 45Y, and 48E of the Internal Revenue Code.
Read more here.
When passed the IRA provided certain bonus credits to certain projects located in “energy communities”. These communities are located on brownfield sites, coal communities, or areas that may have had statistically significant historic employment ties to the fossil fuel industry.
Use this tool to see a DOE sanctioned list of energy communities.
There are several great, comprehensive resources available online regarding the life cycle, intended scope, and latest updates on the IRA. See more in our helpful links and further reading section. If you want to join a synchronous community of experts, sustainability faculty, and curious learners such as yourself regarding the IRA, consider joining the Second Nature IRA Community of Practice (CoP).
Fill out this Google Form and/or email [email protected] to express interest in joining the IRA CoP.
What’s Changed with Clean Energy Tax Credits: A Climate Policy Brief for Higher Education.
2022 Second Nature’s Higher Ed and Climate Provisions in the IRA: Partnering with This is Planet Ed and the MIT Office of Sustainability, Second Nature authored a document highlighting the provisions of the IRA most applicable to the higher education sector.
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