Rep. George Eskridge, R-Dover, told the House Revenue & Taxation Committee this morning that HB 250, which would extend Idaho's renewable energy tax rebate through the end of 2014 - rather than letting it expire on June 30 - creates "a limited window of 40 months to allow those projects on the table the opportunity to finish what they started without a change of rule." Eskridge said the Idaho PUC's suspension of its contract approval process while it worked on establishing new rules for PURPA projects extended the contract approval time at the PUC by months, meaning projects that would have been ready to go now are still awaiting that PUC approval. "We've kinda changed the rules on 'em," Eskridge said.

Eskridge said continuing the rebate "helps continue this drive for energy independence that we started six years ago in this state." He noted that more than 80 percent of all energy in Idaho is now imported from other states.