06.19.07

Cantwell's Plan to Lead Nation in New Energy Direction Included in Finance Committee Package

Cantwell provisions promoting green power, more efficient energy, plug-in vehicles included in comprehensive energy tax package headed to full Senate

WASHINGTON, DC – Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee passed key renewable energy tax incentives championed by U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA). The committee added these provisions to the comprehensive energy tax legislation now headed to the full Senate for immediate consideration. The Cantwell provisions would send America in a new energy direction using tax credits to encourage increased investment in new renewable technologies. The measures would improve efficiency, make clean energy generation more cost-competitive, reduce America’s fossil fuel consumption, and help develop commercially viable plug-in hybrid engines that enable cars and trucks to get one hundred miles or more per gallon.

"This bill takes more than $25 billion in big oil tax breaks and jumpstarts aggressive investments in new energy technologies," said Cantwell, a member of the Senate Finance and Energy committees. "Predictable federal incentives and more private investment in the right technologies will curb pollution, leave more money in consumers’ pockets, and reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. This bill sends America in new energy direction."

Many of the provisions added to the committee-passed energy legislation came from Cantwell’s Clean Energy Investment Assurance Act, introduced in May (read more here). The plug-in hybrid provisions are based on legislation introduced last week by Senators Cantwell, Orrin Hatch (R-UT), and Barack Obama (D-IL) (read more here).

Cantwell-championed provisions in the Energy Advancement and Investment Act of 2007, passed by the Finance Committee Tuesday, include:

  • A 5-year extension of the renewable electricity production credit; this credit, currently set to expire next year, provides an incentive for businesses and utilities to diversify their sources of energy and promote energy production using biomass, wind power, hydropower, geothermal power, and other clean, renewable resources
  • A 4-year extension and expansion of the Clean Renewable Energy Bond (CREB) program; these bonds provide public power systems with interest-free borrowing for renewable energy projects, offering consumer-owned utilities a benefit comparable to tax credits provided to private utilities
  • An 8-year extension of the 30-percent tax credit for the purchase of residential solar power, solar water heating, and fuel cell equipment
  • An 8-year extension of the 30-percent business tax credit for investments in solar energy equipment, fuel cell power plants, and combined heat and power systems
  • A 6-year extension of the deduction for investments in energy efficient commercial buildings to reduce annual energy and power consumption; the legislation would also increase the value of the deduction from $1.80 to $2.25 per square foot
  • A 3-year extension of the tax credits for energy efficient new homes and improvements to existing homes
  • A faster write-off for investments in new "smart meters;" these smart meters would be eligible for seven-year cost recovery, meaning that the cost of the device could be deducted in its entirety over a seven-year period; these meters are currently deducted over a 20-year span and this has acted as a disincentive for utilities to upgrade their meters and let consumers benefit from the resulting energy savings

The Committee also approved new incentives for consumers to purchase plug-in electric vehicles, and voted to extend through 2010 the tax credits that promote alternative fuels, especially biodiesel and cellulosic ethanol.

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