Jobs from Renewable Energy

I’m working to help create jobs with a continued push to encourage the development of clean, renewable energy.

Renewable energy is increasing America’s energy independence, cleaning up the environment and producing thousands of jobs, especially in rural parts of the country.

Earlier this week, I introduced the Clean Renewable Energy Advancement Tax Extension Act, or the CREATE Jobs Act.  The CREATE Jobs Act extends the tax credit for the production of electricity from wind and open-loop biomass through December 31, 2016.  The legislation builds on a provision I authored in the 2005 energy bill to create new clean renewable energy bonds by increasing the bond authority used to build renewable energy facilities.  Increasing the bond authority will help increase the flow of credit in a tight credit market and will help create the capital needed to build new facilities and create the new jobs our economy so desperately needs.

The CREATE Jobs Act also extends bonus depreciation to all businesses for the year of 2010, allowing businesses to deduct in 2010 half the value of any property put into service in the 2010.  This will be particularly helpful to the wind energy industry to help offset the capital investment of big ticket items such as wind turbines. 

I was the author and advocate for the original wind energy tax credit in 1992 and, since then, I’ve witnessed the positive impact that renewable energy has on our economy and our long-term energy goals.  Passing this tax legislation would help spur additional investment in renewable fuels and would give our economy a shot in the arm.

Separately, I’ve been urging the Environmental Protection Agency to act on biodiesel regulations in what’s called the “Renewable Fuels Standard-2.”  The EPA has delayed a final decision and tens of thousands of jobs have been lost as a result.  The agency can start to reverse this very negative outcome by implementing an enforceable biodiesel mandate.  I’m also working in the Senate to extend both the biodiesel tax credit and the small agri-biodiesel credit, which are scheduled to expire at the end of the year.  If these biodiesel tax credits are not extended before the end of the year, the U.S. biodiesel market will come to a grinding halt on January 1, 2010.  Uncertainty about the future of these tax policies has hurt investment in biodiesel at the expense of reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil, as well as job creation.