The Green Communities Designation and Grant Program helps municipalities navigate and meet the five criteria required to become a Green Community, enabling them to qualify for grants that finance additional energy efficiency and renewable energy projects at the local level. The Green Communities Act requires a specific path forward in order for municipalities served by municipal light plants that adopt the renewable energy charge to participate in the Green Communities Designation and Grant program. A municipality must adopt an expedited application and permitting process under which certain facilities may be sited within the municipality, and the permitting process shall not exceed one year from the date of initial application to the date of final approval. A municipality must provide zoning in designated locations for the as-of-right siting. As-of-right siting means that development may proceed without the need for a special permit, variance, amendment, or other discretionary approval.
A municipality must also establish an energy use baseline inventory for all municipal buildings (which includes school buildings, drinking water and wastewater treatment plants, pumping stations and open spaces), vehicles, street and traffic lighting. Designated Green Communities must fill out a grant application and submit it by the deadline of January 15, 2016. Amount of awards will be based on a predetermined grant allocation formula.
Boston, Perma-liner Industries has some exciting information that must be shared now as time is of the essence! It’s the Section 179 Deduction. This allows businesses to deduct the full purchase price of qualifying equipment and/or software purchased or financed during the tax year. That means that if you buy (or lease) a piece of qualifying equipment, you can deduct the FULL PURCHASE PRICE from your gross income. Give us a call so we can offer you our very best products and services now. 1-866-336-2568/ www.perma-liner.com.
