OHIO FAILS SUN

Report: Ohio missed out on solar industry jobs
March 7, 2010 (AP via Dayton Daily News)

"Ohio has missed out on thousands of manufacturing jobs in the solar industry because it was slow to phase out certain taxes and make other adjustments to lure factories…Industry analysts say Ohio is fighting both the perception and reality of having a noncompetitive tax structure compared with other states. Despite having successful solar research companies in the Toledo area, the state hasn't seen that translate into thousands of factory jobs, The Blade reported…

"In the past decade, dozens of manufacturing plants have opened or are near completion in California, Oregon, Massachusetts and other states…Ohio was hampered in its ability to attract solar industry jobs because the corporate franchise tax and tangible personal property tax weren't completely phased out until this year…"

Ohio has yet to put these resources to work. (click to enlarge)

"The state also continues to subsidize coal. The Ohio Constitution says state funding for coal projects can be in the form of grants, but funding for alternative energy projects, such as solar, must be in the form of loans…While Ohio does offer loans for solar projects, it doesn't offer tax credits specifically targeted toward solar equipment manufacturers like those offered in Oregon and Michigan…

"Gov. Ted Strickland said his state was late in constructing policies to attract solar companies. But he also believes Ohio is now competitive because of progress made by his administration…Ohio offers a job creation tax credit between 25 percent and 55 percent to qualifying companies, a job-retention credit for any company maintaining 500 employees and committing $50 million in investment, and grants for companies to pay for employee training in renewable energy technology."

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"Ohio has seven solar energy equipment manufacturers…By comparison, California has 140 solar manufacturers. There are 37 in Arizona, 26 in Florida and 23 in New York. In the Midwest, Illinois and Michigan each have 15…

"Ohio's new energy standards, adopted in 2008, have yet to produce a large market for solar panels…The state is requiring 12.5 percent of electricity sold in Ohio to be from renewable energy resources by 2025…Strickland said… the work his administration has done to improve Ohio's tax structure and other incentives for manufacturing will result in the announcements of new jobs in the coming months."