The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) includes historic tax provisions that will accelerate the deployment of clean energy, clean vehicles, clean buildings, and clean manufacturing, and save communities money on their energy bills.
July 8, 2024
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As of November 2024, the U.S. Department of Energy has awarded a total of $915,000 in funding through the Elective Pay - Blueprints for Communities funding opportunity to the following selectees:
- American Public Power Association
- Electrification Coalition with joint selectees World Resources Institute, Lawyers for Good Government, and Government Finance Officers Association
- Oceti Sakowin Power Authority
- UndauntedK12
- Vision Granted
Learn more about this program below.
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) includes historic tax provisions that will accelerate the deployment of clean energy, clean vehicles, clean buildings, and clean manufacturing, and save communities money on their energy bills. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is partnering with the U.S. Department of Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to support implementation of several of these tax provisions.
Thanks to the IRA’s Elective Pay (often called “direct pay”) provisions, tax-exempt and governmental entities can, for the first time, receive a payment equal to the full value of tax credits for building qualifying clean energy projects. This new mechanism presents a potentially transformative opportunity for communities and non-profits, including many DOE grant and loan recipients, to directly benefit from federal tax credits for clean energy. In addition, the IRA modified the 179d energy efficient commercial building property tax deduction to increase the incentive for energy efficient investments and expand accessibility to tax-exempt entities. However, tax-exempt entities affected by these historic provisions (including state, territory, and local governments; Tribes; and non-profits) do not have significant experience with tax filings and often have limited capacity to dedicate to navigating IRS regulations and filing processes.
This funding opportunity from the DOE aims to address this knowledge gap, supporting the development of additional resources to guide communities as they claim IRA tax credits through Elective Pay and complete projects that create good-paying jobs, lower energy costs, and advance an equitable transition to a clean and resilient energy system.
Opportunity Overview
The objective of this funding opportunity is to support the development and distribution of blueprints or other guiding reference materials to serve as a resource to communities, including DOE grantees, as they plan and develop projects which are eligible for clean energy tax credits through Elective Pay or the 179d energy efficient commercial building property tax deduction.
The opportunity envisions blueprints as documents that will help guide interested entities through all stages of a sample project, identifying important considerations, opportunities, and restrictions along the road to claiming Elective Pay. Blueprints developed through this funding opportunity will address multiple topics central to planning and implementing an eligible project, potentially including but not limited to the following: building a project team; funding and financing; designing an eligible project; documentation and record keeping; tax year determination; prevailing wage, apprenticeship, and domestic content requirements; IRS pre-registration; and tax return filing.
Materials developed through this opportunity may be designed for the general audience of elective pay eligible entities or targeted towards specific audiences defined by geographic region (including U.S. territories), organization type, Tribal association, or other characteristics.
A total of $915,000 in funding will be awarded to 3-10 selectees through this opportunity. Applicants can request up to $305,000 to execute proposed activities over the course of 6 months. Applicants must provide sufficient detail and reasoning to justify the funding amount requested.
The program is managed by ENERGYWERX in partnership with DOE, a collaboration made possible through an innovative PIA set up by DOE's Office of Technology Transitions.
Who Should Apply?
The Office of Policy is requesting applications from organizations working to increase community capacity to implement clean energy projects, including energy efficiency, and/or access federal funding. Applicants well-positioned for this opportunity will be able to demonstrate:
- Experience providing educational or technical assistance services to entities within the eligibility range for Elective Pay, which includes state, local, tribal, and territorial governmental entities, as well as non-profit organizations.
- Tax expertise and the ability to provide generalized tax advice to a public audience.
- Established community networks for information sharing within the range of entities eligible for Elective Pay.
- A demonstrated commitment to increasing state, local, and/or organizational capacity to implement clean energy projects, access federal funding, and/or navigate tax credit filing processes.
- Vision for blueprint deliverable.
Both individual and joint applications will be accepted. Joint applications should be submitted by the lead organization that will manage awarded funds.
How to Apply?
For more information and to apply for funding through this opportunity, visit: Elective Pay - Blueprints for Communities (energywerx.org)
Applications should:
- Describe the applicant’s relevant public engagement and education expertise;
- Identify the applicant’s intended audience(s); and
- Provide a high-level outline of a proposed blueprint deliverable.
Timeline
Applications for this funding opportunity opened on July 7, 2024, and will close at 3:00 p.m. (Eastern) on August 8, 2024. DOE anticipates that applicants will be notified of their selection by August 2024 and that this engagement will run through February 2025.
Questions?
Contact ENERGYWERX: [email protected]