Oppose Extension of Production Tax Credit (and 1603 Grant Program)
National Wind Watch
H.R.3307 [1], “American Renewable Energy Production Tax Credit Extension Act of 2011”, was introduced in the House of Representatives on Nov. 2, 2011, and referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
The Production Tax Credit [2] (PTC) currently provides 2.2 cents per kilowatt-hour of electricity production for 10 years and is the primary means of tax avoidance that makes wind development so lucrative for big energy companies and investors. It is scheduled to expire for wind at the end of 2012.
In 2010, wind developers received $5 billion in federal subsidies [3] through the PTC and other incentive programs.
In return, there has been no measurable effect on fossil fuel use, carbon emissions, or pollution; a pathetically small number of jobs, mostly temporary, have been created; and left in the wind developers’ wake are divided communities, lost wildlife habitat, continuing deaths of birds and bats – many of them already endangered – and destruction of rural peace and quiet and health.
Contact the representatives below to oppose extension of the PTC, as well as renewal of the alternative “Section 1603 [4]” Treasury Grant Program, which provides a grant worth 30% of the property value of a project and expired at the end of 2011. In 2010, wind developers were given $3.5 billion through the 1603 program (“Direct Federal Financial Interventions and Subsidies in Energy in Fiscal Year 2010 [5]”, p. 30).
(As the PTC expires, so will the availability of the Business Energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC) [6] to large-scale wind developers as an alternative to the PTC.)
Faxes and telephone calls are generally more effective than e-mail and web contact. Letters by post are effective but can take weeks to get through security screening. The Congressional Switchboard, at 202-224-3121, will transfer your call to the office of any representative or senator.
| House Committee on Ways and Means (members of Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures in italics) |
H.R.3307 Sponsor: Rep Reichert [7], David G. [WA-8] Cosponsors (as of Dec. 3, 2011): Rep Amodei [8], Mark E. [NV-2] Rep Bartlett [9], Roscoe G. [MD-6] Rep Berg [10], Rick [ND] Rep Blumenauer [11], Earl [OR-3] Rep Boswell [12], Leonard L. [IA-3] Rep Braley [13], Bruce L. [IA-1] Rep Crawford [14], Eric A. “Rick” [AR-1] Rep Doggett [15], Lloyd [TX-25] Rep Dold [16], Robert J. [IL-10] Rep Gerlach [17], Jim [PA-6] Rep Higgins [18], Brian [NY-27] Rep Hirono [19], Mazie K. [HI-2] Rep Inslee [20], Jay [WA-1] Rep King [21], Steve [IA-5] Rep Larson [22], John B. [CT-1] Rep Latham [23], Tom [IA-4] Rep Loebsack [24], David [IA-2] Rep Lucas [25], Frank D. [OK-3] Rep McDermott [26], Jim [WA-7] Rep McIntyre [27], Mike [NC-7] Rep Perlmutter [28], Ed [CO-7] Rep Peterson [29], Collin C. [MN-7] Rep Ryan [30], Tim [OH-17] Rep Sewell [31], Terri A. [AL-7] Rep Thompson [32], Mike [CA-1] Rep Welch [33], Peter [VT] Rep Woolsey [34], Lynn C. [CA-6] Rep Young [35], Don [AK] |
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| Republicans: Dave Camp [36], MI, Chairman Wally Herger [37], CA Sam Johnson [38], TX Kevin Brady [39], TX Paul Ryan [30], WI Devin Nunes [40], CA Pat Tiberi [41], OH Geoff Davis [42], KY Dave G. Reichert [7], WA Charles W. Boustany Jr. [43], LA Peter J. Roskam [44], IL Jim Gerlach [17], PA Tom Price [45], GA Vern Buchanan [46], FL Adrian Smith [47], NE Aaron Schock [48], IL Lynn Jenkins [49], KS Erik Paulsen [50], MN Kenny Marchant [51], TX Rick Berg [10], ND Diane Black [52], TN Tom Reed [53], NY |
Democrats: Sander Levin [54], MI, Ranking Member Charles B. Rangel [55], NY (ex officio) Fortney Pete Stark [56], CA Jim McDermott [26], WA John Lewis [57], GA Richard E. Neal [58], MA Xavier Becerra [59], CA Lloyd Doggett [15], TX Mike Thompson [32], CA John B. Larson [22], CT Earl Blumenauer [11], OR Ron Kind [60], WI Bill Pascrell Jr. [61], NJ Shelley Berkley [62], NV Joseph Crowley [63], NY |
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A complete list of representatives with links to their websites is available at www.house.gov/representatives [64].
Also write your Senators [65] to oppose any extension of the PTC or renewal of the “Section 1603 Clean Energy Treasury Grant Program”.
In addition to relaying the information from this alert, consider this submission from Laura Jackson of Save Our Allegheny Ridges [66]:
We have wasted billions of taxpayer money on industrial wind projects that pad the pockets of corporations – many of them foreign companies. The number of permanent jobs created by a wind project is paltry. Furthermore, industrial wind projects do NOT eliminate any appreciable carbon dioxide production. Since wind projects require backup generation, in some cases the amount of pollution is actually increased when baseload powerplants have to run at less than efficient levels. Electricity from industrial wind is expensive, and is dependent on subsidies. Please do NOT support a production tax credit extension.
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/alerts/2011/12/03/oppose-extension-of-production-tax-credit/
URLs in this post:
[1] H.R.3307: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d112:H03307:@@@L&summ2=m
[2] Production Tax Credit: http://www.dsireusa.org/incentives/incentive.cfm?Incentive_Code=US13F
[3] $5 billion in federal subsidies: http://wind-watch.org/doc/?p=2493
[4] Section 1603: http://www.dsireusa.org/incentives/incentive.cfm?Incentive_Code=US53F
[5] Direct Federal Financial Interventions and Subsidies in Energy in Fiscal Year 2010: https://docs.wind-watch.org/US-subsidy-2010.pdf
[6] Business Energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC): http://www.dsireusa.org/incentives/incentive.cfm?Incentive_Code=US02F&re=1&ee=1
[7] Reichert: http://Reichert.house.gov/
[8] Amodei: http://Amodei.house.gov/
[9] Bartlett: http://Bartlett.house.gov/
[10] Berg: http://Berg.house.gov/
[11] Blumenauer: http://Blumenauer.house.gov/
[12] Boswell: http://Boswell.house.gov/
[13] Braley: http://Braley.house.gov/
[14] Crawford: http://Crawford.house.gov/
[15] Doggett: http://Doggett.house.gov/
[16] Dold: http://Dold.house.gov/
[17] Gerlach: http://Gerlach.house.gov/
[18] Higgins: http://Higgins.house.gov/
[19] Hirono: http://Hirono.house.gov/
[20] Inslee: http://Inslee.house.gov/
[21] King: http://SteveKing.house.gov/
[22] Larson: http://Larson.house.gov/
[23] Latham: http://Latham.house.gov/
[24] Loebsack: http://Loebsack.house.gov/
[25] Lucas: http://www.house.gov/lucas/
[26] McDermott: http://McDermott.house.gov/
[27] McIntyre: http://McIntyre.house.gov/
[28] Perlmutter: http://Perlmutter.house.gov/
[29] Peterson: http://Peterson.house.gov/
[30] Ryan: http://Ryan.house.gov/
[31] Sewell: http://Sewell.house.gov/
[32] Thompson: http://Thompson.house.gov/
[33] Welch: http://Welch.house.gov/
[34] Woolsey: http://Woolsey.house.gov/
[35] Young: http://Young.house.gov/
[36] Dave Camp: http://Camp.house.gov/
[37] Wally Herger: http://Herger.house.gov/
[38] Sam Johnson: http://SamJohnson.house.gov/
[39] Kevin Brady: http://Brady.house.gov/
[40] Devin Nunes: http://Nunes.house.gov/
[41] Pat Tiberi: http://Tiberi.house.gov/
[42] Geoff Davis: http://Davis.house.gov/
[43] Charles W. Boustany Jr.: http://Boustany.house.gov/
[44] Peter J. Roskam: http://Roskam.house.gov/
[45] Tom Price: http://Price.house.gov/
[46] Vern Buchanan: http://Buchanan.house.gov/
[47] Adrian Smith: http://AdrianSmith.house.gov/
[48] Aaron Schock: http://Schock.house.gov/
[49] Lynn Jenkins: http://LynnJenkins.house.gov/
[50] Erik Paulsen: http://Paulsen.house.gov/
[51] Kenny Marchant: http://Marchant.house.gov/
[52] Diane Black: http://Black.house.gov/
[53] Tom Reed: http://Reed.house.gov/
[54] Sander Levin: http://Levin.house.gov/
[55] Charles B. Rangel: http://Rangel.house.gov/
[56] Fortney Pete Stark: http://Stark.house.gov/
[57] John Lewis: http://JohnLewis.house.gov/
[58] Richard E. Neal: http://Neal.house.gov/
[59] Xavier Becerra: http://Becerra.house.gov/
[60] Ron Kind: http://Kind.house.gov/
[61] Bill Pascrell Jr.: http://Pascrell.house.gov/
[62] Shelley Berkley: http://Berkley.house.gov/
[63] Joseph Crowley: http://Crowley.house.gov/
[64] www.house.gov/representatives: http://www.house.gov/representatives/
[65] Senators: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
[66] Save Our Allegheny Ridges: http://www.saveouralleghenyridges.org/