WASHINGTON — The HVACR Alliance announced its endorsement of H.R. 3515, the HVAC Expensing and Technology (HEAT) Act. The bill, introduced by Reps. Pat Tiberi, R-Ohio, and Ron Kind, D-Wis., would allow commercial building owners to expense qualified HVACR equipment under Section 179 of the U.S. Tax Code. 

The HEAT Act addresses one of the main policy priorities that were outlined by the Alliance in a Jan. 6, 2017, letter to Congressional leaders and the Trump administration. It would correct an issue that prevented the intended effect of the 2015 PATH Act, which expanded and made permanent Section 179 expensing and removed an exclusion which prohibited the expensing of HVACR products as capital equipment.

Paul Stalknecht, president and CEO of ACCA and current chairman of the HVACR Industry Alliance, stated, “I am pleased to see members of Congress moving forward on this important issue. It is time for the federal government to recognize the realistic lifespan of commercial HVACR equipment and adjust the depreciation schedule accordingly. Encouraging building owners to replace outdated, inefficient, and failing equipment is a win-win for our national energy policy and building owners. ACCA and the HVACR Industry Alliance looks forward to helping advance this legislation and correcting the 2015 PATH Act.”

Talbot Gee, CEO of Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), stated, “We are truly grateful that Reps. Tiberi and Kind have stepped up to the plate in bipartisan fashion with common-sense legislation, which will better allow our entire industry to more effectively deliver cost and energy savings to building owners.”

“By allowing our members’ products to be treated as capital equipment, this bill will save energy for the nation and money for building owners who currently are prohibited from expensing this equipment under Section 179,” said Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) President & CEO, Stephen Yurek. “We have been working with Congress on this issue for many years, and this is a good first step toward encouraging installation of today’s highly energy-efficient HVACR equipment manufactured by our member companies,” he added.

For more information, email alagunzad@hardinet.org.

Publication date: 8/8/2017

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