Lack Of Incentives Causes Solar Project To Snub Texas

Gilbert Says His Energy Plan Would Help Bring More Solar Projects To State

TYLER-Democratic gubernatorial candidate Hank Gilbert (D-Whitehouse) said this morning that yesterday’s announcement that a large solar panel factory will be built in Arizona instead of Texas should be a wake up call for the state-and one which his energy and environment policy would have helped prevent.

“Texas is bleeding green jobs to other states because we are not doing enough to attract renewable and clean energy industries to Texas,” Gilbert said.

On Monday, Suntech Power (NYSE: STP) announced that it will open a solar panel factory which will bring 75 jobs and manufacture 30 megawatts of solar modules annually in Arizona. Texas was among finalists vying for the new plant. Suntech officials last month indicated that solar incentives would be a key factor in selecting the final site for the plant.

“There were a handful of bills introduced during the 81st Legislature dealing with allocating funds from the Texas Enterprise Fund and the Texas Emerging Technology Fund to green and clean energy related industries and initiatives. None passed,” he continued. “Republicans in the Texas Legislature did their best to make sure that Governor Perry’s economic development slush funds were not touched so he can keep on using the funds to reward campaign contributors like he did Countrywide,” Gilbert said.

Under Governor Perry’s leadership, the Texas Enterprise Fund awarded failed financial giant Countrywide $20 million in 2004. Countrywide’s political action committee donated $7,000 to Governor Perry’s re-election campaign between 2002 and 2009. Earlier this year, it was reported that Countrywide had failed to meet its job creation goals.

“Texas needs bold, common sense plans to make our state the leader in renewable energy production and the manufacture of renewable technologies. This won’t happen under Governor Perry’s watch. He is far too beholden to the old energy establishment,” Gilbert concluded.

Under “Go Green, Texas,” Gilbert’s energy and environment policy released last week, 50 percent of the current balance of the Texas Emerging Technology Fund and the Texas Enterprise Fund-as well as half of all future revenue appropriated to these funds for the next ten years-would be required to go to attracting green industry and green jobs and the development of green energy and environmentally sound technologies.

“If my plan were in place, Texas would have been much better equipped to compete for this facility,” Gilbert said.

FACT SHEET

Sun Sets On Another Solar Opportunity For Texas

Suntech Power Picks Arizona Over Texas. Officials with Suntech said that solar incentives were key to determining where their new plant would be located:

In an interview late last month, Suntech marketing vice president Wei-Tai Kwok told Recharge the company was “really doing the math on each location with all the variables around trying to suss out which place is ideal from a labour and tax benefits [perspective] and even which states are more likely to have solar incentives in their market and have more solar demand in their market.” [SOURCE: Recharge News]

The factory would have initially employed 75 people and produced 30 megawatts of solar modules annually. [SOURCE: Recharge News]

A Preventable Sunset. Had Governor Perry demonstrated true leadership on renewable energy issues and green job creation, he would have supported any number of bills introduced during the 81st Session of the Texas Legislature relating to funding for such companies and projects from the Texas Enterprise Fund and/or Texas Emerging Technology Fund, including:

House Bill 977 by State Rep. Lon Burnam (D-Fort Worth)/SB 878 by State Sen. Wendy Davis (D-Fort Worth). This bill would have mandated that at least 20 percent of total grants made from the Texas Enterprise Fund would go to fund the establishment and expansion of businesses providing energy from renewable energy technologies.

House Bill 1652 by State Rep. Solomon Ortiz, Jr. (D-Corpus Christi). Rep. Ortiz’s bill would have mandated that 20 percent of total grants from the Texas Enterprise Fund and Texas Emerging Technology Fund go to the establishment and expansion of businesses providing energy from alternative energy sources or engaged in conservation of energy through energy efficient technologies.

House Bill 1991 by State Rep. Rafael Anchia (D-Dallas)/Senate Bill 542 by State Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin). This legislation would have ensured that a significant amount of Texas Emerging Technology Fund grants be used to research and develop low carbon fuels, low carbon electric generation technologies (including energy efficiency, renewable energy, and electricity storage), and carbon emissions mitigation strategies.

The Enterprise Fund: Rewarding Campaign Contributors For Not Creating Jobs. The Texas Enterprise Fund gave Countrywide $20 million dollars. In return, Countrywide failed to meet its job creation goals. [Austin American-Statesman, March 28, 2009; LINK]

Governor Perry took $7,000 from Countrywide’s PAC from 2002 to 2009. [SOURCE: Texans for Public Justice]

Making Texas Green. Hank Gilbert’s “Go Green, Texas” energy and environment policy calls for:

Consolidating utility regulation under the Public Utility Commission of Texas. (currently natural gas regulation rests with the Texas Railroad Commission)
Overhauling existing statutes and administrative regulations to hold polluters and regulated industries accountable to Texans.
Incentives for increasing wind, solar, and biomass capacity.
Raising energy efficiency standards for residential and commercial construction.
Requiring the establishment of state energy standards for various appliances.
Property tax incentives for homeowners who install solar panels on their homes, and eliminating the sales tax on the purchase and instillation of solar panels.
Giving businesses a franchise tax deduction for the cost of solar and wind energy systems designed to power their businesses.
Giving homeowners and businesses property tax exemptions for the appraised value of solar, wind, or biomass energy systems.
Retooling the Texas Enterprise Fund to focus on bringing green jobs to Texas.
Retooling the Texas Emerging Technology Fund to focus on helping develop new green energy and environmentally sound technologies.
Requiring all existing coal power plants to adopt cleaner technologies by 2017.
Adopting strict standards for mercury and other pollutants from existing power plants and factories.
A moratorium on permits for new coal power plants unless their emissions are captured and stored.
Requiring cement production plants to reduce mercury emissions by 80 percent by 2014.
Strict standards for underground disposal wells (commonly called injection wells).
Mandatory use of purification technology for drilling waste to be disposed of through injection wells by 2020.
A Surface Owner Protection Act.
A constitutional amendment requiring all revenues generated by the Sporting Goods Sales Tax as well as other user fees and taxes presently dedicated to the park system to be so allocated.
$150 million be allotted for the acquisition and development of new state parks and for the addition of land to existing state parks.