Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 9, September 1, 2024
(1)
An energy conservation project must be completed and operating prior to
applying for a final certification. An applicant must submit requests for
amendments prior to issuance of the final certification.
(2) The department will not review
applications for final certification received after the expiration of the
preliminary certification or informational filing or those without the final
review fee.
(a) A preliminary certification
remains valid for a period of three calendar years after the date the
department issues the original preliminary certification or until the sunset of
the program, whichever comes first.
(b) An informational filing remains valid for
a period of 12 months after the date the department receives the informational
filing, or the sunset of the program, whichever comes first.
(3) The applicant must submit the
application on the current department-issued form and all sections must be
completed.
(4) The department will
review the application, and may conduct an inspection to verify:
(a) That the energy conservation project is
complete and operating.
(b)
Compliance with statute, rules and the preliminary certification or
informational filing.
(c)
Compliance with state and local regulations, including required licenses and
permits.
(d) The lease or rental
agreement if the project is leased or rented.
(e) That the property taxes for the project
location are current.
(f) That the
energy conservation project will be maintained and operated for at least five
years.
(g) The total project costs
for purchase and installation or construction of the energy conservation
project were paid in full.
(A) A certified
public accountant must attest to the total project cost, or if the total
project cost is less than $50,000, the applicant must submit copies of receipts
for the project.
(i) The certified public
accountant cannot be the project owner nor permanently employed by the project
owner or pass-through partner.
(ii) Receipts for proof of payment may
include canceled checks, credit card statements, binding contracts and
agreements.
(B) The
application must demonstrate that no contract or loan agreements directly
related to the project are in default.
(C) The application must include information
regarding all incentives, regardless of source, applied for or received in
connection with the project.
(D)
Applicants must provide itemized documentation of the installed energy
conservation project. A detailed invoice or the public accountant's attestation
may be sufficient documentation.
(h) Other information the department
considers necessary.
(5) If an application for final certification
does not include all information needed to complete the final certification
review, the department may ask the applicant, in writing, to submit additional
information. If the department does not receive the requested information
within 30 calendar days of the date of the notice, the department may deny the
application for final certification.
(6) Applicants may not receive multiple tax
credit certifications from the department for the same energy conservation
project.
(7) The department will
notify the applicant, in writing, if the department denies the application
during final review. An applicant may submit a written request for
reconsideration within 60 days after the department issues a decision on a
final certification application.
(8) As part of the final certification
process, projects with certified cost of $1 million or more will be required to
enter into a performance agreement with the department and applicants with
projects with certified cost of less than $1 million may be required to enter
into a performance agreement with the department.
(a) To determine if a performance agreement
is required for projects with certified cost of less than $1 million, the
department may, but is not limited to evaluating:
(A) Financial aspects of the project,
(B) Technical aspects of the
project, and
(C) Other areas as
determined by the department.
(b) A performance agreement may include:
(A) A recertification requirement under ORS
469B.298,
(B) Energy performance
requirements,
(C) Conditions and
requirements in the preliminary certificate,
(D) A provision allowing the performance
agreement to be terminated for reasons stated in the agreement and subject to
terms described in the agreement, and
(E) Any additional requirements that the
department determines are appropriate to promote the purposes of ORS
315.331 and
469B.270 to
469B.306.
(c) The department may require a legal
sufficiency review of a performance agreement by the Oregon Department of
Justice prior to entering into the agreement.
(d) If the department decides to require a
performance agreement, the department will send a performance agreement to the
applicant for review.
(e)
Applicants will have 30 calendar days from the date of the offer letter
accompanying the performance agreement to accept the performance agreement. The
offer letter accompanying the performance agreement will specify how an
applicant may accept the performance agreement. An applicant's failure to
accept the performance agreement as specified in the offer letter may result in
denial of the application for final certification.
(f) After the department receives the
performance agreement signed by the applicant and the department executes the
performance agreement, the department will issue the appropriate portion of the
tax credit certificate. Projects subject to recertification may be issued a
certified amount letter showing the total tax credit amount approved along with
a final certificate for the initial portion of the tax credit.
(g) An applicant must submit a written
amendment request to the department to amend a performance agreement. The
department will decide whether to approve the request. An amendment cannot
result in a greater tax credit amount.
(A) If
approved, the department will draft an amended performance agreement, which may
contain new or amended conditions and requirements. The amended performance
agreement will become effective upon signature by all parties.
(B) If denied, the department will notify the
applicant in writing. The notice will include the reasons for the denial of the
amendment request.
(9) The department will determine the
certified cost upon verification that the energy conservation project's
installation or construction is complete and that the project complies with
statute, rules, the preliminary certification or informational filing, and any
other applicable requirements.
(a) Except as
provided in subsection (c), the department may issue a tax credit certificate
of up to 35 percent of the qualifying cost. The department may certify a lesser
tax credit amount than approved in the preliminary certificate or reserved in
the informational filing, but may not certify a greater amount.
(b) The sum of any incentives, grants,
credits and the energy conservation tax credit may not exceed total project
costs.
(c) If recertification of
the tax credit is required under ORS 469B.298 and this rule, the department may
issue a certificate for an initial portion of tax credit up to 10 percent of
the certified cost. To receive certification of the full value of the tax
credit, the applicant must recertify the tax credit as required under ORS
469B.298 and OAR 330-210-0110.
(10) The department will send a written
notification to the applicant of its decision whether to issue a final
certification within 60 days, after the department receives a complete
application for final certification. If a written decision from the department
is not issued within 60 days after receipt of the complete application, then
the application is rejected and no further action will be taken. Any time
required to provide additional information as provided in OAR 330-210-0100(5)
is not included in this 60 day period.
(11) For purposes of administering the sunset
of the energy conservation tax credit program under Oregon Laws 2011, chapter
730, section 36:
(a) The department must
receive a complete application for final certification prior to the end of the
2017 tax year of the applicant.
(b) For applicants who choose to use the
pass-through or transfer process, the entity purchasing the credit must pay for
the tax credit prior to the end of its 2017 tax year.
Stat. Auth.: ORS
469.040,
469B.306
Stats. Implemented: ORS
469B.270 - 469B.306,
315.331
