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Committee advances substitute reducing new pipeline depreciation from 50 to 20 years
Summary
The committee adopted a substitute for House Bill 18 92 changing the depreciation schedule for new pipelines from 50 years to 20 years; members debated alignment with State Tax Commission and PSC guidance before voting 6–3 to advance the measure.
The House Ways and Means Committee voted to advance a substitute to House Bill 18 92 that would change the depreciation schedule applied to new pipelines. Committee discussion focused on whether the bill harmonizes state practice across counties and whether it conflicts with State Tax Commission or Public Service Commission guidance.
Chair Mcgill explained depreciation is a noncash deduction and the substitute would change the depreciation timeline on specified pipeline assets to 20 years. Representative Taylor asked for clarification and noted that State Tax Commission rules had used 50 years for new pipeline depreciations, seeking confirmation the bill would change that to 20. The sponsor and proponents described the amendment as clean-up language intended to reflect the bill’s intent.
An amendment to change the wording to 20 years (House amendment 1) was adopted and rolled into a substitute. After discussion, the committee took a recorded vote and advanced the substitute by 6 yes and 3 no.
Members raised concerns about consistency and the policy trade-offs between uniformity across counties and existing regulatory depreciation schedules; Representative Taylor voted no and asked members to weigh State Tax Commission positions in their votes.
