Email my Senator (he's a swing vote on this one) ensign.senate.gov/forms/email_form.cfm to voice your support for Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax of 2008, H.R. 5351 which removes the $18 billion tax break given to oil companies and uses that money to extend the renewable energy credits for business and regular folks... thats tax credits for insulating your home, changing your lightbulbs, adding solar panels, buying a hybrid car etc. For businesses and local governments it means a lot more... it means investing in big capital projects like solar powering a factory or windmill farms for small cities. Smart investing that gives green high tech geeks good jobs and old GM employees a shot at working again in a new field, the nice smart green field.

And really its because I want to get one of these mariahpower.com/index.php and with the current Sierra Pacific rebate ($2400) and the tax credit for the rest it makes it a really affordable option. And they are here in Reno, how's that for local. Sadly the first eval seems to show that we don't have enough dependable wind daily all day long that solar may still be the way to go... we're looking at all our options. And having a federal credit is a really really nice way to increase my consumer spending and save the country from recession.


Here' an article about it.

March 24, 2008 www.solar-nation.org/2008/03...gy-bill/
At the end of February, the U.S. House of Representatives went “once more unto the breach” in an attempt to create long-term extensions for renewable energy tax credits.

And just as had happened twice before, the bill (on this occasion the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax of 2008, H.R. 5351) passed the House comfortably. The final vote was 236 - 182 with 11 members of the House not voting, and was largely split along party lines.

In a joint statement, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and sponsor of the bill Charles Rangel said: “The bill extends and expands tax incentives for renewable electricity, energy and fuel, as well as for hybrid cars, and energy efficient homes, buildings, and appliances. It does not add to our deficit, but rather repeals $18 billion in tax subsidies for Big Oil companies. By strengthening our renewable energy sector, the bill will help create the next generation of good-paying, green collar jobs and bring down energy prices in the long term.”

Of course, it’s that “$18 billion in tax subsidies for Big Oil” that has stymied similar bills before, with Senate Republicans closing ranks in the face of intense lobbying from that very sector of American industry. And the Bush Administration has already issued a letter indicating that the president will veto a bill that rolls back tax breaks for the oil and gas industry, so all eyes are now on the Senate: can the Finance Committee find sources of revenue for renewable energy tax credits that are less objectionable to the GOP and the White House?

We understand that in this interim period between House and Senate votes, Finance Committee members are working hard to find common ground between opposing positions. There are other potential sources of revenue out there that could sway enough Republicans to switch their vote when the bill comes to the Senate floor in late April–enough to avoid a filibuster, perhaps enough even to overcome a veto–but it’s going to take a lot of haggling on the Hill to make everybody play nice.

Postscript: We’re told—by Oil and Gas—that Oil and Gas needs those tax breaks to finance exploration for new sources of oil and gas. What a difference three years makes. Here’s President Bush on 5/14/2005:

“And so one of the initiatives that I will push, again, is to get an energy bill out. I will tell you with $55 oil we don’t need incentives to oil and gas companies to explore. There are plenty of incentives. What we need is to put a strategy in place that will help this country over time become less dependent. It’s really important. It’s an important part of our economic security, and it’s an important part of our national security.”