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106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1731

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide that the credit

for electricity produced from certain renewable resources shall apply

to electricity produced from all biomass facilities and to extend the

placed in service deadline for such credit.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MAY 6, 1999

Mr. HERGER (for himself, Mr. MATSUI, Mr. MCCRERY, Mr. CAMP, Mr.

FOLEY, Mr. WELLER, Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts, and Mr. THOMAS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways

and Means

A BILL

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide

that the credit for electricity produced from certain renewable resources shall apply to electricity produced from

all biomass facilities and to extend the placed in service

deadline for such credit.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Biomass Energy Eq5 uity Act of 1999’’.
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1 SEC. 2. MODIFICATIONS TO CREDIT FOR ELECTRICITY

2 PRODUCED FROM RENEWABLE RESOURCES.

3 (a) QUALIFIED FACILITIES INCLUDE ALL BIOMASS

4 FACILITIES.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (B) of section

6 45(c)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (re7 lating to credit for electricity produced from certain

8 renewable resources) is amended to read as follows:

9 ‘‘(B) biomass.’’

10 (2) BIOMASS DEFINED.—Paragraph (2) of sec11 tion 45(c) of such Code is amended to read as fol12 lows:

13 ‘‘(2) BIOMASS.—The term ‘biomass’ means—

14 ‘‘(A) any organic material from a plant

15 which is planted exclusively for purposes of

16 being used at a qualified facility to produce

17 electricity, or

18 ‘‘(B) any solid, nonhazardous, cellulosic

19 waste material, which is segregated from other

20 waste materials, and which is derived from—

21 ‘‘(i) any of the following forest-related

22 resources: mill residues, precommercial

23 thinnings, slash and brush, but not includ24 ing old-growth timber,

25 ‘‘(ii) waste pallets, crates and

26 dunnage, manufacturing and construction
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1 wood wastes (but not including pressure2 treated, chemically treated, or painted

3 wood wastes), and landscape or right-of4 way tree trimmings, but not including un5 segregated municipal solid waste (gar6 bage),

7 ‘‘(iii) agriculture sources, including or8 chard tree crops, vineyard, grain, legumes,

9 sugar, and other crop byproducts or resi10 dues, or

11 ‘‘(iv) poultry waste.’’.

12 (b) EXTENSION AND MODIFICATION OF PLACED-IN13 SERVICE RULES.—Paragraph (3) of section 45(c) of such

14 Code is amended to read as follows:

15 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED FACILITY.—

16 ‘‘(A) WIND FACILITIES.—In the case of a

17 facility using wind to produce electricity, the

18 term ‘qualified facility’ means any facility

19 owned by the taxpayer which is originally

20 placed in service after December 31, 1993, and

21 before July 1, 2009.

22 ‘‘(B) BIOMASS FACILITIES.—In the case of

23 a facility using biomass to produce electricity,

24 the term ‘qualified facility’ means, with respect

25 to any month, any facility owned or leased by
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1 the taxpayer which is originally placed in serv2 ice before July 1, 2009, if, for such month, bio3 mass comprises not less than 75 percent (on a

4 Btu basis) of the average monthly fuel input of

5 the facility for the taxable year which includes

6 such month.

7 ‘‘(C) SPECIAL RULES.—In the case of a

8 qualified facility described in subparagraph

9 (B)—

10 ‘‘(i) the 10-year period referred to in

11 subsection (a) shall be treated as beginning

12 no earlier than the date of the enactment

13 of this paragraph, and

14 ‘‘(ii) subsection (b)(3) shall not apply

15 to any such facility originally placed in

16 service before January 1, 1997.’’.

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

18 this section shall apply to electricity produced after the

19 date of the enactment of this Act.

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