Or. Admin. Code § 330-090-0350

Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 11, November 1, 2024

Section 330-090-0350 - Tiered Prioritization System for Renewable Facilities

(1) Applicability: The tiered priority system applies to applications for facilities that use or produce renewable energy resources, or are listed as renewable energy resources, as defined under ORS 469B.130.

(2) Process: The department will issue a BETC Opportunity Announcement (OA) detailing the availability of potential tax credits for renewable facilities, the criteria to be applied in selecting facilities for allocation of available potential credits, and soliciting applications within a set time period. Applications will be reviewed within tiers, differentiated by facility cost. The process and level of review differ between tiers as specified in these rules and the OA. The requirements for issuance of preliminary and final certifications within these rules will apply to all applications allocated potential tax credits through the tiered priority system.

(a) Tier one application acceptance and review will be completed on an ongoing basis subject to the tax credit limitations published by the department. Complete applications will be processed in the order they were received and may be rejected once the department has received applications totaling all available credits for this tier.

(b) Tier two application review will consist of an OA and three review steps:

(A) OA: The department will issue an OA and collect applications.

(B) Step one: Applications will be reviewed against initial standards, which will include criteria that will ensure those that advance are complete and that the facility can be completed prior to the program sunset. The fee for step one is non-refundable. Applications that do not proceed to step two or three may reapply during a future OA.

(C) Step two: Applications will be reviewed for priority against standards and criteria detailed in the OA and initial allocations of available potential tax credit will be made. Applications that proceed to step three will be required to submit an additional non-refundable fee.

(D) Step three: Technical review of proposed facilities will be completed, allocations of potential tax credits confirmed and announced, and preliminary certifications issued.

(c) Tier three application review will consist of an OA and three review steps:

(A) OA: The department will issue an OA and collect applications.

(B) Step one: Applications will be reviewed against initial standards specified within the OA to include ensuring those that advance are complete, and that the facility can be completed prior to the program sunset. The fee for step one is non-refundable. Applications that do not proceed to step two or three may reapply during a future OA.

(D) Step three: Technical review of proposed facilities will be completed and allocations of potential tax credits confirmed prior to the issuance of a preliminary certification. If the department determines that it does not have the appropriate resources available to conduct the review, the department may notify the applicant that the department intends to use a third party to conduct the technical review. If a third party is used, the applicant will be required to submit payment to the department approved third party for the review.

(3) Tier Boundaries:

(a) Tier one shall consist of applications with projected facility cost less than $500,000.

(b) Tier two shall consist of applications with projected facility cost equal to or greater than $500,000 but less than $6,000,000.

(c) Tier three shall consist of applications with projected facility cost equal to or greater than $6,000,000.

(d) For the purposes of determining tier assignment, facility cost shall not be limited as defined in ORS 469B.142.

(e) Applicants may apply for less than the maximum eligible potential tax credit for their project, this shall not change the tier within which the application is reviewed.

(4) Allocation of tax credits between tiers and application periods

(a) The department shall announce the allocation of potential tax credits. The OA will specify the distribution of funding for the appropriate tiers and the amount allocated to the current application period. The department will continually monitor the rate of allocation of potential tax credits to ensure the total amount of potential tax credits does not exceed the limits provided in Oregon Laws, 2010, Chapter 76, Section 2.

(b) If no applications are received within an application period for any tier, the allocated potential tax credits for that period and tier will be reallocated by the department. If the total request from all complete applications received for a period and tier is less than the allocated potential tax credits, the department will review all applications to determine that they meet any applicable standards prior to allocating potential tax credits, and reallocating remaining potential tax credits. If allocated potential tax credits remain but are insufficient to satisfy the request of the next applicant, the Director may offer a reduced tax credit amount or reallocate the remaining potential tax credits.

(c) Potential tax credit amounts that are not allocated to a facility at the end of a limitation period specified in Oregon Laws, 2010, Chapter 76, Section 5 will expire.

(5) Application acceptance periods

(a) Tier one applications will be accepted at any time prior to the sunset, while allocated funds are available.

(b) Tier two and three applications will only be accepted during an application acceptance period specified in an OA. Applications for tier two and three received outside of an application acceptance period will not be accepted.

(6) Criteria. The department will announce specific standards and criteria that will be considered in determining eligibility in the OA. In addition to the criteria listed in Oregon Laws, 2010, Chapter 76, Section 6, criteria for tiered two and three potential tax credits may include:

(a) The completeness of the application and whether it was received within the time period specified in the OA;

(b) The appropriate application payment;

(c) The time frame in which actual construction will be started and completed and the ability to meet all regulatory requirements including program deadlines;

(d) Criteria established in statute or rules that apply to the BETC program;

(e) The simple payback period;

(f) The number of jobs created;

(g) Whether the renewable activities were aligned with conservation activities;

(h) The financing structure of the facility;

(i) The reliability of power created;

(j) Whether the facility is combined heat and power or co-gen system;

(k) If the applicant is a public body, whether a competitive bidding process was utilized;

(l) Nationally recognized standards or practices for the specified technology; and

(m) Any other factors listed in the OA.

(7) Incomplete applications

(a) The department will determine if an application is complete. An application is incomplete if it does not include information needed to demonstrate substantive compliance with the provisions of ORS 469B.130 to 149B.169 and any applicable rules, standards and criteria in the OA, rules or otherwise adopted by the Director.

(b) For tier one the department will provide a written notice to applicants that the application is incomplete, specifying the information needed to make the application complete. Applicants will be allowed 30 days from the time of notification by the department to provide specified information. The application expires if the applicant does not supply the information within 30 days.

(c) Incomplete applications for tier two or three will not be accepted for the current OA. Applicants may reapply and resubmit their application during the next OA.

(8) Prioritization within tiers

(a) Applications within tier one are not be subject to prioritization, but will be required to meet listed standards and other requirements of the BETC program. If the Director receives applications for preliminary certification with a total amount of potential tax credits in excess of the allocation for tier one, the Director will allocate potential tax credits in the order in which complete applications are received.

(b) Applications within tiers two and three will be ranked within each tier against required criteria specified within the OA in effect at the time of application acceptance, and must meet the requirements of the OA and the BETC program.

(9) Allocation of potential tax credits within tiers:

(a) Potential tax credits available within an application period will be allocated to applications in order of the priority established under section (8) and as determined by the procedure in the OA. Applicants may be offered less potential tax credit than requested in their application.

(b) For tiers two and three, applicants will have 10 business days to respond in writing to the department's written notification of the offer of preliminary certification. Applicants who do not respond during this period will be considered to have rejected the offer of the preliminary certification. If an applicant does not accept an allocation, the potential tax credits may be issued to other applications within the period or to future periods or tiers. Upon written acceptance from the applicant, the department will issue a preliminary certification under ORS 469B.145.

(10) Applications allocated potential tax credits: Applicants who are issued a preliminary certification under this section must follow all department procedures and obtain final certification prior to issuance of tax credits. Allocation of potential tax credits through the issuance of a preliminary certification does not guarantee issuance of final certification.

(11) Applications not issued preliminary certification: Applications reviewed under this section and not allocated potential tax credits will be notified by the department. Applicants may make application for the same facility within a future application period but will not be eligible to carry-forward applications or fees.

Or. Admin. Code § 330-090-0350

DOE 14-2010, f. & cert. ef. 11-23-10; DOE 8-2012, f. & cert. ef. 7-10-12

Stat. Auth.: ORS 469.040 & 469.165

Stats. Implemented: ORS 469.185 - 469.225, 315.354, 315.356, HB 3680 2010.