Pre-filed legislation would provide tax credit for water harvesting.
New Mexico State Senator Peter Wirth pre-filed SB 16 to be considered during the legislature’s short 2014 session. The bill would allow residents and businesses who install a water harvesting system between January 1, 2014 and December 31, 2024 to apply for tax credit of up to $5,000 in the year that system is installed.
The legislation has the express purpose “to provide an incentive for homeowners and businesses to use harvested water for future use” and defines a water harvesting system as “a system that is designed to provide for the collection of rainwater or snowmelt from the rooftop of a building and is capable of storing the rainwater or snowmelt for future use.”
Other key provisions of the bill would set an annual cap of $2 million on tax credits approved and would require the Regulation and Licensing Department, in cooperation with the State Engineer, to develop procedures for certifying water harvesting systems.
New Mexico’s legislative session will convene on January 21 and run for 30 days.
Written by Marta Weismann