Economic Impacts of Wind Power in Kittitas County: Final Report
Summary
Estimates the effect of the increase in jobs and local spending on property values, economic impacts, and tax revenues.- Surveyed tax assessors in other counties.
- Reviewed available literature on property value effects.
- Used input-output model with data from two companies proposing wind projects in Kittitas County.
Findings:
- Views of wind turbines will not negatively impact property values.
- Wind plant construction will have significant economic benefits.
- Wind plant operation will provide additional annual economic benefits.
- Property tax revenues will increase.
- Tax revenues to Kittitas County Government will increase.
Citation: Economic Impacts of Wind Power in Kittitas County: Final Report (PDF 331 KB) or (PDF 326 KB) Download Adobe Acrobat
Author(s): ECONorthwest
Report Date: Nov. 2002
Project Size: 390 MW potential
Number of Turbines: 260
Location: Kittitas County , WA
Geographic Scope: Kittitas County, WA
Turbine Ownership: Zilkha Renewable Energy (110 turbines) and enXco (150 turbines)
Type of Study: Pre-project
Timeframe of Data: n/a
Model: Input-Output and IMPLAN (Impact Analysis for PLANning)
Data Sources: Surveyed tax assessors in other counties and reviewed available literature to determine potential effects of wind farms on property values; estimated local economic impacts using an input-output model based on construction and operations data obtained from the two companies proposing projects in Kittitas Co.; estimated tax revenues using input-output model results based on tax rate and spending information obtained from Kittitas Co.
Assumptions: Assumed tax rates remained constant when estimating tax revenue; assumed value of each turbine as $765,000; property tax rate used is 1.35%; construction period predicted to last approximately one year.
Special Considerations: Did not consider the increases in costs or the provision of county services that the wind power plant might require; local/state taxes collected by State and distributed to County.
| Jobs | Construction | Operations (jobs/year) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct | 95.2 | 22 | 117.2 |
| Indirect | 30.3 | 3.1 | 33.4 |
| Induced | 60 | 28.2 | 88.2 |
| Total | 185.5 | 53.3 | 238.8 |
| Jobs/MW | 0.48 | 0.14 | 0.61 |
| Income | Construction | Operations | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct | $9,835,000 | $3,200,000/year | $13,035,000 |
| Indirect | $1,113,000 | $129,000/year | $1,242,000 |
| Induced | $1,509,000 | $938,000/year | $2,447,000 |
| Total | $12,457,000 | $4,267,000/year | $16,724,000 |
| Taxes | Direct | Indirect | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local/State | $17,244 | ||
| Income | |||
| Property | $2,683,125 | $201,971 | $2,885,096 |
| Sales | $7,103 | ||
| Total | $2,909,443 |
Developer Incentives:
Lease Payments: 30% of the turbines will be built on land managed by the Washington Department of Natural Resources, for which a rental fee will be paid to the State, then returned to schools throughout the State. Annual rental rate: $4,500/turbine. Total amount: $351,000/year
Other Remuneration: $2,927 in all other taxes not mentioned above; $2,094 licenses and permits; $8,509 charges for services; $2,138 fines and forfeits.
Conclusion: The survey of tax assessors and literature shows that views of wind turbines will not negatively impact property values.