In June 2023, the Department of Energy (DOE) released a map showing census tracts that qualify for the energy communities bonus based on coal closures. That is, a census tract, or adjacent census tract, where a coal mine closed after 1999 or a coal-fired generating unit was retired after 2009. Mine data is based off the MSHA dataset available  here , with the caveat that mines must be a "surface" or "underground" type. Additionally, mines with latitude and longitude information that does not match the county and state listed in the dataset or where the latitude and longitude only extend to the tenths place are excluded. Information on retired coal generating units is sourced from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) of the U.S. Department of Energy in the  Preliminary Monthly Electric Generator Inventory (EIA Form 860M)  or the  Electric Generator Inventory (EIA Form 860). 

DOE also released a map showing those metropolitan or non-metropolitan statistical areas with at least 0.17% of employment related to the extraction, processing, transport, or storage of coal, oil, or natural gas at any time beginning in 2010 and that have an unemployment rate higher than the national average based on the county-level  Local Area Unemployment Statistics . Fossil employment will be calculated using  County Business Patterns  county files for the following North American Industry Classification (NAICS) codes:

• 211: Oil and gas extraction
• 2121: Coal mining
• 213111: Drilling oil and gas wells
• 213112: Support activities for oil and gas operations
• 213113: Support activities for coal mining
• 32411: Petroleum refineries
• 4861: Pipeline transportation of crude oil
• 4862: Pipeline transportation of natural gas

NOTE: The content below represents ACP's preliminary look at energy communities before guidance was published. It is no longer relevant but is kept here for posterity and comparison.

ACP has compiled a first look at energy communities as defined in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The bill provides a 10% bonus credit for siting a project in an energy community. The IRA defines energy communities as either:

1. A brownfield site;
2. A metropolitan or non-metropolitan statistical area with an unemployment rate at or above the national average in the previous year and at least 0.17% of employment or 25% of local tax revenues related to the extraction, processing, transport, or storage of coal, oil, or natural gas at any time beginning in 2010; or
3. A census tract, or adjacent census tract, where a coal mine closed after 1999 or a coal-fired generating unit was retired after 2009

Disclaimer: Please note that the analysis provided is both preliminary and subject to change. ACP neither guarantees the accuracy of the information nor the status of the identified tracts and statistical areas in meeting the definition of an energy communities as defined in the Inflation Reduction Act. While ACP has attempted to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information provided, the information is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. ACP does not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, completeness, legality, or reliability of this information.

Projects placed into service on brownfield sites, as defined under Section 101(39)(A), (B), and (D)(ii)(III) of CERCLA, are also eligible to recieve a 10% bonus credit. Due to their relatively small footprint, ACP did not consider these brownfield sites in this analysis.

ACP relied on the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) definitions of metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas. Those definitions are available  here . Note, in New England, metropolitan and non-metropolitan statistical areas to not neatly map to counties. As such, New England is excluded from the analysis regarding employment at the metropolitan and non-metropolitan statistical area level. However, the region is included in the analysis of coal plant and mine closures.

Data on employment by industry was collected from the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) data at the county level for the years 2010-2021. That data is available  here.  Counties were mapped to metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas using the BLS crosswalk. In the QCEW data, they provide total employment and employment based on different North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) codes. We’ve identified the following codes that are relevant to this exercise:  

• 211: Oil and Gas Extraction
• 2121: Coal Mining
• 213111: Drilling Oil and Gas Wells 
• 213112: Support Activities for Oil and Gas Operations
• 213113: Support Activities for Coal Mining
• 32411: Petroleum Refineries
• 4861: Pipeline Transportation of Crude Oil
• 4862: Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas
• 48691: Pipeline Transportation of Refined Petroleum Products

Unfortunately, coal transportation is difficult to capture as it is included in shipping, trucking, and railroad categories with other products.

Unemployment data for 2021 was collected from the BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics at the county level. The data is available  here.  Metropolitan area and non-metropolitan area unemployment was calculated by taking a population weighted average of unemployment rates in their underlying counties. Any metropolitan or non-metropolitan area that had both a coal, oil, and natural gas share of employment greater than or equal to 0.17% and an unemployment greater than the national average in 2021 (5.3% as provided by  BLS ) was designated an energy community.

Next, we identified closed coal mines by compiling data from U.S. Mine Health and Safety Administration (MHSA) on the status of thousands of mines that were active between the years 2000 and 2021.  The dataset can be accessed by choosing Dataset 13 at the bottom of this page.  We identified nearly 5,500 mines in the 2000 to 2021 timeframe that were marked as abandoned, abandoned and sealed, or nonproducing.

ACP collected EIA-860 data on retired coal generating units, including latitude and longitude, for those that were retired after 2009. That data is available  here . Both the retired coal generating units and the closed coal mines were mapped to Census tracts. Any tract containing a retired coal generating unit or closed coal mine, or any tract adjacent to one of those tracts, was designated an energy community.

In response to the Treasury's Request for Information (RFI) on energy communities, ACP submitted the following list of NAICS codes as suggestions for sectors related to the extraction, processing, transport, or storage of coal, oil, or natural gas.

• 211 Oil and Gas Extraction
• 2121 Coal Mining
• 213111 Drilling Oil and Gas Wells
• 213112 Support Activities for Oil and Gas Operations
• 213113 Support Activities for Coal Mining
• 221112 Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation
• 2212 Natural Gas Distribution
• 23712 Oil and Gas Pipeline and Related Structures Construction
• 324 Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing
• 32411 Petroleum Refineries*
• 42471 Petroleum Bulk Stations and Terminals
• 4861 Pipeline Transportation of Crude Oil
• 4862 Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas
• 48691 Pipeline Transportation of Refined Petroleum Products

*Note: NAICS sector 32411 is included in NAICS sector 324 Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing.

ACP has also identified those metropolitan or non-metropolitan areas that had both a coal, oil, and natural gas share of employment greater than or equal to 0.17% and an unemployment greater than the national average in 2021 (5.3% as provided by  BLS ) based on this more expansive set of NAICS codes.

ACP also conducted this analysis using County Business Patterns (CBP) data for employment rather than QCEW data, along with the larger list of NAICS codes. Data on employment by industry was collected from CBP at the county level for the years 2010-2020. That data is available  here.  As in the other analysis, counties were mapped to metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas using the BLS crosswalk. Similar to QCEW, ABP provides total employment and employment based on different North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) codes.

QCEW may suppress employment information when there are few establishments in a particular county. While CBP does prevent the release of some information due to confidentiality concerns, CBP is able to mitigate this using a technique called "Noise Infusion." According to CBP, Noise Infusion is a method of disclosure avoidance in which data values for each establishment are perturbed prior to table creation by applying a random noise multiplier to the magnitude data (i.e., characteristics such as first-quarter payroll, annual payroll, and number of employees) for each establishment.

Using CBP data to qualify MSAs/Non-MSA as energy communities leads to an increase in the number identified from 81 using QCEW to 113. However, there are a small number of MSAs/Non-MSAs that qualify under QCEW that fail to qualify under CBP.