tax incentives
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Did House Dems kill renewable tax credit extension?
Sure looks that way. I wasn’t entirely thrilled with everything in the Senate bill. But given how dreadful congressional Democrats and environmentalists are at messaging, it is surely the best anybody could hope for. The House Dems threw out elements of the tax package that were crucial to get the support of Senate Republicans and […]
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Renewable tax credits pass again in House, but changes to the plan may kill it in the Senate
The fate of tax extensions for renewable energy remains in question today, after the House approved a tax package that differed from the version passed earlier this week in the Senate. To the delight of enviros, the House version strips out tax incentives for oil shale and tar sands development, as well as provisions […]
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A car in every garage
Everyone in the world has already linked to this story about McCain’s 13 cars (Obama has one — a hybrid Ford Escape), but I just can’t get over the humor of this sentence: "The McCains also own three 2000 NEV Gem electric vehicles, which are bubble-shaped cars popular in retirement communities." I think the hypocrisy […]
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Investing in clean infrastructure
Originally posted to the NDN blog. —– The debate now underway in the Congress on a financial bailout is not the only important piece of business before the Congress in its waning days. With a real economic recession now all but certain, Congress is considering a second stimulus package. But at this critical moment in […]
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Senate passes renewable tax credits on the ninth attempt
The Senate today overwhelmingly approved a massive tax package that mashes together incentives for renewable energy with support for traditional energy sources less beloved by environmental groups. The Energy Improvement and Extension Act of 2008, sponsored by Sens. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), would extend the investment tax credit for solar energy for […]
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Taking the red tape out of green power
Adam Stein predicts that the financial meltdown will cool the ardor for carbon legislation, and I agree. But that doesn’t mean that policymakers will throw up their hands. Here are my predictions. One, the framing will shift from making fossil fuels more expensive (e.g. putting a price on carbon, a carbon tax, etc.) to making […]
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‘Environmental purists’ unhappy with House Dem energy bill
This is mostly water under the bridge now, but look, Dems got outmaneuvered this summer, as Republicans managed to successfully reframe the energy debate around drilling. They drummed up lots of public support and put Dems on the defensive. This is the fault not only of Dem lawmakers but also of everyone on the progressive […]
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Senate Dems falter on energy compromise bill
Both The Hill and Politico have reported that the Gang of 20 will not introduce a bipartisan compromise energy bill before the election. This is a huge triumph for McCain and major political blunder by Congressional Democrats. As I wrote Monday, the original compromise bill by the Gang “is the best chance — indeed, the […]
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Senate settles on a grab bag of political favors in place of an energy policy
Next week, the Senate plans to consider the Energy Improvement and Extension Act of 2008, a hodgepodge of subsidies and tax credits that reflects the vacuum of long-term strategic thinking in U.S. energy policy. The bill is a classic Senate Christmas Tree, bedecked with tax breaks and loopholes for just about every energy-related industry under […]
