Heather Cooper

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Heather Cooper works on federal income tax matters, with a focus on energy tax issues. She represents clients in restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, and other transactional energy related matters. Heather's national practice includes advising on all aspects of renewable energy transactions such as solar and wind projects. She provides advice on tax equity structures, refinancings, acquisitions and dispositions, restructurings and workouts. Read Heather Cooper's full bio.

Court Awards $206 Million to Alta Wind Projects in Section 1603 Grant Litigation


By , , and on Nov 4, 2016
Posted In Environmental, Project Development and Finance, Renewables, Tax

The US Court of Federal Claims awarded damages of more than $206 million to the Plaintiffs in a case with respect to the cash grant program under Section 1603 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the Section 1603 Grant). In its opinion, which was unsealed on Monday, October 31, the Court held...

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Final Regulations Define ‘Real Property’ for REITs: Considerations for Renewable Energy and Transmission Assets


By , , and on Sep 29, 2016
Posted In Renewables, Tax, Uncategorized

On August 31, 2016, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and US Department of the Treasury issued final regulations (Final Regulations) under section 856 of the Internal Revenue Code to clarify the definition of “real property” for purposes of sections 856 through 859 relating to real estate investment trusts (REITs). The Final Regulations largely follow proposed...

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Energy Tax Extenders in FAA Bill Unlikely


By , , and on Jun 30, 2016
Posted In Environmental, Project Development and Finance, Renewables, Tax, U.S. Congress

As discussed in our post on April 7, US Congress extended the Production Tax Credit (PTC) under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 45 and the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) under IRC Section 48 in December 2015, but failed to include extensions for certain types of renewable energy property, including fuel cell power plants, stationary microturbine power...

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IRS Revises Recent Begin Construction Guidance


By , , and on May 20, 2016
Posted In Renewables, Tax

On May 18, 2016, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) revised Notice 2016-31 (Notice), its recent guidance on meeting the beginning of construction requirements for wind and other qualified facilities (including biomass, geothermal, landfill gas, trash, hydropower, and marine and hydrokinetic facilities). For a discussion of the Notice, click here. The revisions clarify that the Continuity...

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IRS Issues Guidance on the Beginning of Construction Rules for Renewable Projects


By , , and on May 11, 2016
Posted In Renewables, Tax

The Internal Revenue Service recently issued Notice 2016-31, which provides much-needed guidance for wind and other qualified facilities on meeting the beginning of construction requirements in light of the 2015 statutory extension and modification of the production tax credit and the investment tax credit. The Notice also revises and adds to the list of excusable disruptions...

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Short-Term Reauthorization of FAA Programs Potentially Paves the Way For Omitted Energy Credit Extenders


By , , and on Apr 7, 2016
Posted In Project Development and Finance, Renewables, Tax, U.S. Congress

As discussed in our post on March 16, the Congressional extension of the Production Tax Credit (PTC) under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 45 and the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) under IRC Section 48 in December 2015 failed to include extensions for certain types of renewable energy property, including fuel cell power plants, stationary microturbine...

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President Obama Signs Consolidated Appropriations Act


By , , and on Mar 16, 2016
Posted In Project Development and Finance, Renewables, Tax, U.S. Congress

Renewable Energy Industry Seeks Additional Energy Credit Clarifications On December 18, 2015, President Barack Obama signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 (H.R. 2029) (the Act). The Act includes multi-year extensions of the Production Tax Credit (the PTC) under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 45 and the Investment Tax Credit (the ITC) under IRC...

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Key Energy-Related Tax Provisions in the 2017 Budget Proposal


By , and on Feb 23, 2016
Posted In Environmental, Natural Gas, Renewables, Tax, U.S. Congress

President Obama’s recently released budget proposal for the 2017 fiscal year repeats many of his past energy-related tax proposals, including a permanent extension of the renewable energy production tax credit and a provision making it refundable. Making the production tax credit permanent and refundable signals the administration’s continued strong support for renewable energy. This On...

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What Must Be Done for Wind and Solar Projects to Have “Begun Construction” under the New PTC and ITC?


By , , and on Feb 5, 2016
Posted In Project Development and Finance, Renewables, Tax

With the recent extension of the federal income tax credits available for renewable energy projects, practitioners and industry participants have raised questions as to how the “begun construction” rules will apply under these new regimes.  The new regimes refer to the dates on which construction on projects began for purposes of determining qualification for the...

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Extension of Renewable Energy Tax Incentives


By , , and on Jan 14, 2016
Posted In Environmental, Renewables, U.S. Congress

On December 18, 2015, President Barack Obama signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 (H.R. 2029) (the Act), which included welcomed extensions to a number of energy tax incentives. The legislation includes multi-year extensions of the Section 45 Production Tax Credit (the PTC) and the Section 48 Investment Tax Credit (the ITC) for wind and...

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