Provisions slashing energy subsidies are expected to have significant ramifications on not only the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions but also energy prices.
A recent analysis from BloombergNEF said that a repeal of the green tax credits would result in 17 percent less renewable construction. It said that the cut, combined with growing electricity demand, is “a recipe for spiking power prices.”
Ethan Zindler, policies and countries analyst with BloombergNEF, said that for analysis purposes, the changes made in the House bill are akin to a full repeal.
“The tax code at the moment helps to reduce the cost of electricity for consumers from renewables, which today account for the vast majority of what gets added to the grid,” he said.
“If you remove those supports, then developers will simply seek to charge more, and in a number of cases, utilities will be forced to pay more, and those costs will flow through to consumers.”
Several analyses estimate that electric bills could rise noticeably as a result.
A Rhodium Group estimate has found that keeping the tax credits in place could save consumers 2 to 4 percent on their electric bills in 2030 and 2 to 5 percent in 2035. Aurora Energy Research has found that removing the tax credits will increase electric bills by an average of 10 percent — or $142 per year — by 2040.
Read more about the bill's overall impacts from colleagues and me at TheHill.com.
