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Environmentalist and municipal leaders offered differing opinions on how Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) agreements between local public entities and solar developers should be handled at Thursday’s Cortland County Legislature meeting.
As part of the meeting, the Legislature held a public hearing on an amendment to the county’s current law on PILOTS. The amendment eliminates the county’s asking price of $7,000 per megawatt (MW) generated and codifies the need for PILOT agreements on solar projects.
The local law also designates the County Industrial Development Agency (IDA) as the lead agency to negotiate a PILOT agreement if a developer proposes a project directly to county officials. If a project is proposed directly to a municipality, that municipality can negotiate a PILOT with the developer.
Lapeer town supervisor Gary Cornell explained his town’s opposition to the amendment.
“We have been less than satisfied with the IDA during our solar project, which started in 2018,” he said. “The town board and staff performed most of the work and has only seen a 16.54 percent return, while the county received 36.55 percent in payments, the school district received 45.98 percent in payments, and the Marathon library received .93 percent.”
Cornell said that considering how much effort the town board put into drafting the PILOT, he feels the distribution of funds was unfair.
“Future solar projects will be handled much differently with everything clearly spelled out,” he said.
Proponents of this amendment, which would slash a provision that states the floor of negotiations for a PILOT should start at $7,000 per megawatt, have said this negotiation baseline is the reason why solar developers haven’t invested in Cortland County.
“The town feels that the lack of new projects beginning in the county has more to do with small municipalities having to implement new rules and regulations in its local laws, and less to do with the $7,000 per megawatt payment requirement,” Cornell said.
Town of Willet supervisor Sandy Doty said the town board rarely communicated with the IDA through the PILOT process in the town.
“The IDA contacted the town about the use of the town hall for a public meeting,” he said. “That is the only contact made with the town board. The Town of Willet did all the work, we hired the attorneys, and when we got done the county ended up with $13,290.47; our local school district with $12,883.44. Our residents are not happy with it.”
The town, he said, only received $3,726.09 from the PILOT.
The reason why developers are not investing in solar projects in Willet’s area, Doty said, is because the infrastructure is not there. He added two projects have fallen through because New York State Electric and Gas have said the town’s infrastructure is incompatible with solar.
“Leave the $7,000 payment where it is,” he said. “These companies are making money. Don’t let them kid you that they are paying too much.”
Kim Cameron, a local environmental activist, spoke at the meeting, noting the IDA can help farmers and the environment with the passage of this amendment.
“This is an independent agency designed to be free from politics,” she said.
Cameron stressed the need to expand local solar energy.
“Climate disruption is real and undeniably happening now here,” she said. “This is now the law in New York State. We do not need to be subject to the ups and downs of the world oil market. This is the future.”
Sheila Cohen, a SUNY Cortland professor, spoke in favor of the amendment, noting the IDA has the expertise to negotiate PILOTs. Cohen said the amendment could help establish more projects.
“It could help establish a use for less-than-prime land for solar development, and that may well be of considerable value to some land owners,” she said.
Legislative Minority Leader Beau Harbin (D-LD-2) said the Agriculture, Planning and Environmental Committee will look at this amendment again in November, considering the feedback received Thursday.
