Investments for Renewable Energy, Not Loopholes for Big Oil

[RedEarth]

Renewable energy and energy efficiency are key elements in our transformation from a high carbon, oil dependent economy to a sustainable low carbon economy. The Energy Independence and Security Act, P.L. 110-140, enacted late in 2007, includes many important renewable and efficiency measures, including better motor vehicle fuel economy standards and a sustainable biofuels mandate. Yet at the 11th hour, President Bush and Senate conservatives removed a package of additional economic incentives that included extensions of tax credits for wind and solar energy, and for biofuels.

Congressional leaders are not giving up the fight for this critical aspect of energy policy; many of last year’s initiatives are getting a second chance in the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2008, H.R. 5351.

This new bill, which the House may debate and vote on as soon as February 27th, includes the Energy Independence and Security Act’s tax incentives for renewable electricity and fuels, energy-efficient technologies, cleaner cars, and clean coal. Some provisions have been omitted, because a leaner proposal is more likely to secure bipartisan consensus and gain passage.

The price tag for H.R. 5351 comes in at $18.5 billion—$2.5 billion less than the previous bill’s axed tax credits. And this would be largely funded by closing some of the tax loopholes that have been lining Big Oil’s already gold-filled pockets.

One of these revenue-raising measures is eliminating the Internal Revenue Code section 199 deduction, which gives a subsidy for domestic oil and gas production. Its removal would cost Big Oil $1.4 billion annually over the next 10 years—a paltry sum considering that the big five oil companies made a combined profit of $123 billion in 2007 alone. ExxonMobil alone made a profit of over $77,000 per minute last year—more than the annual income of two-thirds of American families.

President Bush said in 2005: “I will tell you with $55 oil we don’t need incentives to oil and gas companies to explore.” Now that oil is nearly $100 per barrel, big oil companies certainly do not need additional tax loopholes to encourage oil exploration.


http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2008/02/investments_energy.html

[cloudythescribbler]

1. K & R -- also there needs to be more focus/honesty about hydrogen

Recently, a KEY link in the 'alternative energy' chain was forged when a method for extracting/separating hydrogen much more cheaply was successfully developed.

But all these technological advances' applications hinge on political will.