Why It Matters NextEra Energy Inc's . core business — wind, solar, battery storage, and nuclear generation — depends heavily on federal tax incentives that are now in flux. The passage of the "One Big Beautiful Bill" restructured the clean energy tax credits originally established under the Inflation Reduction Act, creating new eligibility timelines and phaseout schedules that directly affect the company's project pipeline. According to Utility Dive, NextEra's CFO projected the company would bring in $1.6 to $1.8 billion in tax credit sales by 2026 — making the preservation of transferable credits a core financial priority.

A legislative solution would likely involve maintaining or extending clean energy production and investment tax credits under IRC Sections 45Y and 48E, preserving credit transferability under Section 6418, and ensuring favorable IRS construction timelines. The engagement of a tax-specialist firm signals that NextEra is focused squarely on the tax side of the energy policy debate.

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By the Numbers: NextEra Energy Q1 2026 Filing

The First Quarter 2026 disclosure reports $50,000 paid to Washington Tax and Public Policy Group LLC. This is consistent with what the company paid the same firm in prior quarters — $50,000 in first quarter 2025, $40,000 in the second, $50,000 in the third , and $40,000 in the final quarter 2025 — totaling $180,000 for the full 2025 calendar year with this firm alone.

The three lobbyists named in this filing — Zach Price, Max Pedrotti, and Greg Nickerson — all operate out of Washington Tax and Public Policy Group LLC. Nickerson is a new addition to this particular filing; Price and Pedrotti appeared in prior NextEra filings with the firm. One notable change: Greg Nickerson does not appear in the firm's earlier NextEra filings, suggesting a possible expansion of the team for this engagement.

All three lobbyists carry Republican-connected congressional backgrounds. Price previously served as a staff assistant to Sen. Dan Coats (R-IN). Pedrotti served as Legislative Director for Rep. Carol D. Miller (R-WV), a role he held across three Congresses. Nickerson's background is the most directly relevant to the subject matter — he served on the staff of the House Ways and Means Committee during the 107th through 109th Congresses, when the committee was under Republican majority leadership. Ways and Means has jurisdiction over tax legislation, including the energy tax credit provisions at the center of NextEra's lobbying interests.

The lobbying disclosure database shows the company retained at least 15 external lobbying firms over the past year, in addition to maintaining an in-house lobbying operation. External firms active on NextEra's behalf during this period include Tides Group LLC, Penn Avenue Partners LLC, Nickles Group LLC, Invariant LLC, Polaris Consulting LLC, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, Crowell & Moring LLP, Capitol Tax Partners LLP, Harbinger Strategies LLC, and MO Strategies Inc., among others.

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The Agenda

The First Quarter 2026 filing lists no specific issues or legislation. However, the company's related filings through other registered lobbyists provide a clear picture of the issues NextEra has been pressing. Across the past year, the dominant themes in the energy sector lobbying activity include renewable energy tax credits under IRC Sections 45, 45Q, 45V, 45Y, 48, and 48E; credit transferability under Section 6418; interest deductibility under Section 163(j); and bonus depreciation under Section 168(k).

Multiple filings explicitly reference H.R. 1, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the budget reconciliation legislation that restructured IRA clean energy provisions. Sections 70512 and 70513 of that bill — which address clean electricity production and investment tax credits — appear repeatedly across NextEra's lobbying disclosures. Solar import trade policy, including antidumping and countervailing duty cases and H.J.Res. 39, which would have disapproved a Commerce Department rule on solar import duties, also featured prominently. Energy transmission permitting and infrastructure investment round out the agenda.

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Broader Context

The policy environment surrounding this lobbying disclosure is active. According to Jones Day, the IRS issued new "beginning of construction" guidelines establishing that wind and solar projects must begin significant physical work by July 4, 2026, to lock in eligibility for credits under Sections 45Y and 48E. OPB reported that projects completing construction by 2030 can still qualify if they meet that deadline, while those missing it face stricter requirements. Tax Notes reported that industry groups have challenged the IRS guidance in court.

On Capitol Hill, Rep. John Larson issued a press release in March 2026 calling for the extension of clean energy tax credits and announcing $350,000 in federal funding for Connecticut's hydrogen and fuel cell industry — directly touching on policy areas central to NextEra's business. NextEra CEO John Ketchum's public warnings about energy reliability were also cited during a congressional hearing on the Defense Production Act, reflecting the company's visibility in ongoing legislative debates.

Congressional hearing records in the lobbying disclosure database show NextEra representatives have testified directly before Congress on permitting reform and grid policy. In testimony on H.R. 1900, the Natural Gas Pipeline Permitting Reform Act, NextEra Vice President of Governmental Affairs David Markarian stated: "NextEra's support of this bill isn't so much for today, it is for the future, it is for the next 20 and 30 years." In a separate hearing on the electricity sector, former FERC Chairman and NextEra Executive Vice President Joseph Kelliher described the company as "the world's leading generator of renewable energy" and positioned it as a leader in the clean energy transition.

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Competitive Landscape NextEra is not alone in pressing these issues. Berkshire Hathaway Energy Co. retained Washington Tax and Public Policy Group for $130,000 or more over the past year, lobbying on overlapping provisions including IRC Sections 45, 45Y, 48, 48E, and 6418 — the same credit transferability and clean electricity provisions central to NextEra's agenda. BP Corporation North America Inc. engaged the same firm on clean energy credits including Sections 45V, 45Y, 45Z, 48, and 48E. The firm's client roster also includes energy-adjacent players such as General Motors Co., which has lobbied on electric vehicle tax credits under Sections 30D and 45W — provisions that intersect with the broader clean energy tax framework NextEra is working to protect.

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The Bottom Line

NextEra's engagement of Washington Tax and Public Policy Group LLC reflects a sustained, tax-focused lobbying strategy at a moment when the federal clean energy tax credit framework is being actively rewritten. The $50,000 quarterly retainer is modest relative to the company's broader lobbying footprint, but the firm's specialization and the lobbyists' congressional backgrounds — particularly Nickerson's Ways and Means Committee experience — suggest the engagement is targeted.
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