Editorials

[ OUR OPINION ]

Solar tax credit
should be hot issue
in isle campaigns

THE ISSUE Hawaii, which leads the nation in home use of solar energy, stands to lose that distinction if a tax credit expires.

A report in yesterday's paper showed that eight towns in Hawaii placed among the top 10 in the nation in the percentage of homes employing solar energy. The other two are in the deserts of New Mexico. However, the continued progress of solar energy here appears to be in jeopardy because a critical tax credit may be allowed to expire. That should be prevented and the tax credit should be renewed.

In this political season, the voters might well be interested in knowing what each of the gubernatorial candidates plans to do about the solar tax credit if she or he is elected. Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono and her rivals in the Democratic Party and the presumed Republican candidate, Linda Lingle, should tell us as the campaign moves on. Since legislation would be required of the Legislature next year, candidates for the House and the Senate also should let us know where they stand on this matter.

It's clear from the history of solar energy that a favorable tax ruling is effective. The national census taken in 2000 showed 47,069 homes using solar energy, down from 54,536 a decade earlier. The reason: Federal and state tax credits had fallen by the wayside. The 35 percent tax credit of as much as $1,750 in Hawaii is due to expire next June 30, possibly with the same consequences.

Solar energy, which in Hawaii is used mostly for hot water, is attractive for several reasons. It is:

>> abundant and cuts the state's dependence on imported oil;
>> clean and does not pollute the environment;
>> economical, costing less than oil-generated electricity;
>> a provider of jobs in an economy that has been limping for most of the last 10 years.

The Hawaiian Electric Co. supports the solar tax credit with an additional $750 rebate because that reduces the need for investments in expensive oil-fired generating plants. Depending on the size and capacity of the solar equipment and the cost of electricity, a home installation could pay for itself in savings in about four years.

Under the best of circumstances, solar water heating has a long way to go. The town with the highest percentage of homes with solar energy is Ewa Villages with 105 homes, which comprise only 9 percent of the homes there. Lahaina is second, with 223 homes, but that is only 8.5 percent of the homes in that town.

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Published by Oahu Publications Inc., a subsidiary of Black Press.

Don Kendall, Publisher

Frank Bridgewater, Editor 529-4791; fbridgewater@starbulletin.com
Michael Rovner, Assistant Editor 529-4768; mrovner@starbulletin.com
Lucy Young-Oda, Assistant Editor 529-4762; lyoungoda@starbulletin.com

Mary Poole, Editorial Page Editor, 529-4790; mpoole@starbulletin.com
John Flanagan, Contributing Editor 294-3533; jflanagan@starbulletin.com

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