Warrenton Fiber Co. v. Department of Energy

283 Or. App. 270 (2016)

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Warrenton Fiber Co. v. Department of Energy

Oregon Court of Appeals
283 Or. App. 270 (2016)

Facts

The State of Oregon had a statutory biomass-tax-credit program that allowed tax credits for agricultural producers or biomass collectors who produced or collected biomass in Oregon and used the biomass in Oregon as biofuel or to produce biofuel. The statute defined biomass to include organic matter derived from “forest or rangeland woody debris from harvesting or thinning” conducted to improve the forest’s or rangeland’s ecological health and reduce wildfire risk. The statute excluded sawdust and other types of residual log-mill wood waste from the definition of biomass. The Oregon legislature tasked the Oregon Department of Energy (ODOE) (defendant) with establishing procedures and criteria for determining the amount of the biomass tax credit for which a taxpayer qualified and certifying taxpayers eligible to claim the credit. Warrenton Fiber Company (Warrenton) (plaintiff) purchased tree logs and hauled the logs to its facility. Warrenton then stripped the bark from the logs, turned the stripped logs into wood chips, and sold some of the stripped bark as “hog fuel.” Warrenton sought a biomass-tax-credit certification from ODOE based on its sale of hog fuel, but ODOE denied Warrenton’s application based on the statute’s exclusion of mill-related wood waste from the definition of biomass. Warrenton challenged ODOE’s decision in an Oregon state court, arguing that the hog fuel fell within the definition of biomass because the trees used in Warrenton’s mill operations originally came from harvesting or thinning conducted to improve forest or rangeland ecological health. The trial court granted summary judgment in Warrenton’s favor, and ODOE appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Flynn, J.)

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