Tug-of-war continues on energy tax credits

 House conservatives are escalating their pressure against the Senate easing the rollback of Inflation Reduction Act tax credits in the GOP’s megabill. 

A group of Senate Republicans wants to phase out the incentives in a way that doesn’t jeopardize projects and jobs, and they’re taking advantage of delays resolving other issues to make their case.

But House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said Thursday that the Senate’s language on the IRA tax credits “needs to get reversed.”

Legislation released by the Senate Finance Committee would soften the House’s harsh phase-down of solar and wind energy credits by removing requirements forcing projects to start construction within 60 days and be plugged into the grid by 2028. But moderates want to give companies even more room to maneuver.

“People should know that the policy is set to have these expire, and I support that. It’s more a matter of doing it in a responsible [and] sustainable way,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said Thursday.

POLITICO reported there’s a potential compromise floating around that would give wind and solar projects a full year of production and investment tax credits. That would allow the incentives to be cut off during the Trump administration.

“It could have legs,” said a Senate Republican aide granted anonymity to talk freely. “There’s a lot going back and forth.”

Negotiations on the tax credits and other issues involve members of both chambers and the White House to make sure a final bill can become law quickly. But Scalise — reflecting the view of many conservatives — wants the House’s language to prevail.

“You saw where the House position was,” he said. “We had a lot of back-and-forth over getting that language right to keep it tight. And President Trump, by the way, is where we are, if not more aggressive, at getting rid of it.”

Conservative Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) did not mince words: “I think it’s going to cause real problems. So if I were the Senate, I would take the House’s position right now.”

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Mike Lee (R-Utah), who may see top priorities left out of the megabill, amplified a social media post from fossil fuel advocate Alex Epstein arguing that ending IRA subsidies immediately could generate $500 billion in savings.

“Now more than ever, we need deficit-reduction wins,” Lee posted on X after the parliamentarian ruled against a proposal on Medicaid that was supposed to help pay for the tax cut, energy and border spending budget package.

The parliamentarian — a referee of the budget reconciliation process that will allow Republicans to bypass the filibuster to pass their megabill — has also ruled against rule-busting and public land sale provisions favored by Lee.

Tillis rebutted the idea that senators would target energy tax credits to find more savings. Beyond Medicaid, Republican leaders are looking for a deal on raising state and local tax deductions.

Tillis said the discussions were on “separate tracks” and geared toward “preserving the majority of the savings that come from the House but doing it in a way that appears to be more conducive to a graceful ramp-down.”

Asked about Scalise’s comment, Tillis said, “I’m wondering if their goal is to just end the tax credits or to achieve savings, which we believe that we do, only with better treatment for the businesses. I guess I need to figure out what I’m missing.”

Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), who favors a more aggressive phasedown of the credits, stressed the importance of the politics at play.

“Can you get 50?” he asked about securing the necessary votes. And Tillis similarly recognized the need to make sure whatever senators do can pass the House.

Senators are not expecting to make major changes from the Senate Finance text. They will also soon run out of time to talk.

“This is not going to be the thing that’s holding up the bill,” the Republican aide said. “Once they have decided on Medicaid and SALT, pens are down, this is not the issue No. 1 for offices moving forward on the bill.”

Tug-of-war continues on energy tax credits - E&E News by POLITICO

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why Spain’s Rooftop Solar Owners Weren’t Spared From the Blackout

Image
  When the electricity  suddenly went out in Spain  on Monday, Irene Casas and her husband Luis Morate, who live in an apartment building in a Madrid suburb, lost power along with everyone else. That’s despite the fact that they, along with their neighbors,  own a source of electricity : 200 rooftop solar panels installed at the end of 2023. The panels didn’t help them ride out the blackout because they are connected directly to the grid. Each co-owner, including Casas and Morate and their neighbors, gets a discount on their utility bill in exchange for the power they put into the electricity network, but the panels themselves don’t directly supply their apartments with energy. Casas and Morate’s experience goes against what many people would consider conventional wisdom: Solar on your roof provides energy independence. Yet, that’s not always the case. “On principle, solar panels give us power during the day, but in reality we are connected to the grid like everyone ...
Read more

There Once Was a Blade From Nantucket -- Doomberg

Image
  Aug 04, 2024 ∙  “There is no such thing as accident; it is fate misnamed.” – Napoleon Bonaparte The 1930s were distinctly warm years in many parts of the world, including the Atlantic basin. Although hurricanes were not yet named and tracked to the extent they are today, meteorologists tell us that the decade saw an unusually high number of powerful storms. Among them are the Category 5 Freeport Hurricane of 1932 and the Great New England Hurricane of 1938. The latter raced up the Atlantic Coast, ultimately crashing ashore on Long Island, New York, and then again in Connecticut. The  regional damage  was profound: “ Wind, fire, floodwaters, and tidal surges all caused damage in New England. In New London, Connecticut, the tidal surge drove the five-masted school ship Marsala into a warehouse complex along the docks, setting off a short circuit and fire which consumed a quarter-mile area of the business district – the worst calamity in New London since Benedict Arno...
Read more

New York --- What's keeping the lights on --- Grid Brief March 27

Image
  What’s Keeping the Lights On? March 27 , 2024   (Here is a graph – courtesy of Grid Brief -- showing the electric generation power source mix for New York State from  Mar 19  through  Mar 26 )   Natural gas, hydro, and nuclear kept the Empire State running.  That holds true for week after week after week. Hydro performed well last week. Nuclear was steady as always. Both of these sources are CO2 free, of course. Wind contributed something on Thursday and Friday of last week, with another little bump late Monday. Solar (yellow line) – essentially nothing.
Read more