HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	235
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2008
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

SUPPORTING THE USE OF TAX INCENTIVES TO ENCOURAGE THE USE OF ALTERNATE ENERGY SOURCES.

     WHEREAS, the use of petroleum accounts for ninety per cent of the State's energy needs; and

     WHEREAS, this overdependency on fossil fuel leaves the State extremely vulnerable to oil embargos, supply disruptions, international market dysfunctions, and other risks; and

     WHEREAS, the continued consumption of petroleum negatively impacts the State's environment; and

     WHEREAS, Hawaii has an abundance of renewable energy resources, such as solar, geothermal, wind, biomass, and ocean energy; and

     WHEREAS, the increased use of renewable energy resources would achieve broad societal benefits including energy self-sufficiency, environmental sustainability, economic development, and job creation; and

     WHEREAS, the use of renewable energy resources can be increased by providing tax incentives for the construction or repairs of buildings or the sale or installation of equipment related to renewable energy resources to produce:

     (1)  Energy from an energy source or the utilization of an energy process that does not use fossil fuels or nuclear fuels; or

     (2) An increased level of efficiency in the utilization of energy produced by fossil fuels or in the utilization of secondary forms of energy dependent upon fossil fuels for its generation; and

     WHEREAS, an energy source may include solid wastes, wind, geothermal, solar, or ocean waves, tides, or currents; and

     WHEREAS, an energy process may include bioconversion, hydroelectric power, thermal conversion, or osmosis; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2008, the Senate concurring, that the Legislature supports the use of tax incentives (i.e., general excise tax) to encourage the use of alternate energy sources; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism, the Director of Taxation, the Chair of the Hawaii Chapter of Sierra Club, and the President of the Hawaii Renewable Energy Alliance.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Alternate Energy; Tax Incentives