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November 3, 2011 in Idaho
Labrador wants to ax green energy incentives
Idaho Congressman Raul Labrador wants to do away with green energy incentives, and instead cut corporate tax rates.
Labrador held a press conference in Washington, D.C. today, joining anti-tax activist Grover Norquist, to announce that he’s co-sponsoring legislation to do away with “all energy subsidies,” including tax incentives for plug-in electric and fuel cell vehicles, the production tax credit for renewable energy, the investment tax credit for equipment powered by solar, fuel cells or geothermal, and the credit for producing oil and gas from marginal wells.
“Instead of America’s hardworking taxpayers footing the bill for billions of dollars in government subsidies, our legislation would empower the free market to determine which forms of energy our families and businesses use each and every day,” Labrador declared.
The measure is sponsored by Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Kansas; Labrador said it would eliminate $90 million in energy tax subsidies over the next 10 years, while reducing the corporate tax rate by a like amount. Groups backing it include Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform, the Club for Growth and Americans for Prosperity, a group backed by oil billionaire David Koch.
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Kivaari on November 03 at 10:21 a.m.
Good deal. Green energy if it was economical would be operating under private ownership. We can’t afford Solyndra or Sun*power taking hundreds of millions of dollars for useless projects. The largest solar panel array in the world only powers 45,000 homes. Some of the most expensive power in America.
Vist a windfarm and notice all the non-working windmills. Green energy only works when it costs less then other traditional sources. Right now it can’t compete with coal or water.
richardch on November 03 at 10:39 a.m.
Way to go Raul, keep up the good work!
gmorton on November 03 at 11:11 a.m.
Common sense, but it will never get past the incorrigible free lunchers in the Senate.
oneanddone on November 03 at 11:19 a.m.
Not so fast my friends. True, throwing money at business to produce questionably efficient energy is throwing it away. What needs to be done however is not give other businesses more of a free ride. That money, as well as every nickel of oil industry tax incentive, needs to be spent on research toward renewable, clean, and cheap energy such as fusion, hydrogen, and switchgrass for ethanol.
slamdunk on November 03 at 11:20 a.m.
Smae old dribble from Raul….cut the corporate tax rate. Don’t these folks from the greedy old party get it? It’s high time the 99% get a tax break…that means us. Not COngress or the 1%. Congress’ net woth is now 2 billion…..quit Raul. JUST QUIT!!!!
gmorton on November 03 at 11:26 a.m.
slamdunk worte,
“It’s high time the 99% get a tax break…that means us.”
Half of the “99%” – 47% – already get the ultimate tax break. They pay zero income taxes. Most of the rest pay 10%. Do you want them to pay nothing also?
gmorton on November 03 at 11:27 a.m.
oneanddone wrote,
“That money, as well as every nickel of oil industry tax incentive, needs to be spent on research toward renewable, clean, and cheap energy such as fusion, hydrogen, and switchgrass for ethanol.”
Er, no. It needs to be spent on whatever the people who earned it choose to spend it on.
mikeln on November 03 at 11:28 a.m.
How can you cut somthing that does not exist? Have these people not noticed that the more you steal the less tax you pay? If this country is to survive we must come up with a energy policy that works, right now we do not have a energy policy. We do, however, have oil companies that tell the government what they can and can not do. This is because our military runs on oil. Energy, the single most important security issue, should have never been allowed to be ran by the private sector and untill we nationalize energy we will keep being robbed, untill the oil is gone with nothing to replace it, leaving millions and millions dead.
kma on November 03 at 3:06 p.m.
Lab is in bed with the hart folks. God, when will the people of Idaho wake the he!! up.
The repuks will never do anything for me or you but just for their big business money making businesses. Look at the division folks. Don’t get sucked up into their web.
kma on November 03 at 3:13 p.m.
Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform…………That is what he is promoting folks.
Not any help for me or you as a middle class tax payor…………but as a Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform continues to help those that don’t pay any tax folks..
Does it give me or you more relief? Of course not. It is for the RICH………..THOSE MAKING BIG F………….ING BUCKS FOLKS!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh, but that does not bother those that will never be taxed because they are republican’ts that are for never taxing the rich………………………………………………………….. as they don’t give a sH!T about you and me.
Seagraf on November 03 at 3:27 p.m.
Labrador doing the business of big oil. Repeal tax incentives for competing “green” energy while defending to the death the big oil subsidies. Is there a pattern here?? His big oil master has obviously asked for some payment for services rendered.
lowtechmaster on November 03 at 4:00 p.m.
Read the news report today about how most corporations pay NO or very little taxes. Yet, they are not providing JOBS! Sure, let’s cut the tax rate they do not pay anyway, give them more profits, and await forever the new jobs they will create!!
WHS on November 03 at 4:13 p.m.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2016682399_corptax04.html
Here is a good read for all you that support this proposal.
The bottom line, the corporations are making record profits, paying less taxes and have a huge, readily available work force… Yet what are they doing? Why don’t all you conservatives just ask Whirlpool? Yeah, they are closing a plant in the US, adding to the US unemployment rate and doing what? Yup, they are opening a new plant in Mexico.
So, you tell me. Whirlpool paid how much? Oh yeah, thats right… They paid NOTHING! In fact, they not only paid zero taxes, they got 64 million dollars in benefits! And you idiots are applauding this…
Good Luck America. With people like Labrador, Pompeo and Norquist running things, Americans don’t stand a chance.
WHS
gmorton on November 03 at 4:41 p.m.
mikeln wrote,
” … untill we nationalize energy we will keep being robbed . . .”
Hmmm. Methinks you do not know that the word “robbery” means. “Robbery” consists in taking the property of another by force. Any oil there may be on some Texas rancher’s land does not belong to you, or to the government. It belongs to that rancher. You propose to “nationalize” it, i.e., steal it, and then have the temerity to call the oil company to whom the rancher sold it a “robber.”
Amazing how the leftist mind works.
johnclarke on November 03 at 7:38 p.m.
*sigh* where to start with gmorton. I’d say lets tap the hot air being distributed from his posts for renewable energy.
Half of the “99%” – 47% – already get the ultimate tax break. They pay zero income taxes
This is the Bush tax code. You don’t like it? Take it up with the Republicans. Also, let’s keep in mind what created this bulk of individuals that are actually making too little money to qualify to pay income tax. Do you know the answer? (hint, it’s not the Democrats)
Er, no. It needs to be spent on whatever the people who earned it choose to spend it on.
You are talking about tax dollars in the form of incentives. If we leave innovation to your pals in the oil industry, we will have no innovation. Besides the folks in the coal and gas industries should probably think about thier future, and the future of the planet. You will be long dead thankfully, but our children will probably like a planet without pollution.
Any oil there may be on some Texas rancher’s land does not belong to you, or to the government
Gee, I suppose all oil comes from some mythical Texas rancher right? No oil, natural gas or minerals come from public lands I guess. Mining companies don’t get free permits to take the tops of mountains off then leave the waste for the taxpayer, that never happens, right?
gmorton, there is no law against being a simpleton but if there was - you would be in jail.
gmorton on November 03 at 8:56 p.m.
johnclarke wrote,
“If we leave innovation to your pals in the oil industry, we will have no innovation.”
Guess that’s why there was no innovation during the 19th and the first half of the 20th centuries – there were no government subsidies. That’s why we’re still traveling on horseback, communicating via Pony Express, and reading our mail under whale oil lamps.
“No oil, natural gas or minerals come from public lands I guess.”
Some of it does. In which case the gummint receives royalties, like any other land owner.
johnclarke on November 03 at 9:52 p.m.
Actually, super genius - some pretty important innovations have been purchased then killed by oil companies. There are just so many ways to burn fossil fuels. You can still find tracks for non emission transportion on a few streets around Spokane.
I think you need to do a little research on mining rights and leases. Often they are simply given away. Gold miners for example will crush entire landscapes in order to run cyanide through it to leech gold. Then the poison is left for you and me to clean up.
force_vector on November 03 at 10:03 p.m.
I dare any “green energy” advocate to locate a plot of land suitable for geothermal energy production, and attempt to apply for the required permits. Let me know in 10 years how it worked out for you.
These projects are smoke and mirrors. There are real opportunities to develop alternative energy sources in tandem with traditional energy sources. The problem is, many of these locations are a mixture of BLM and Forest Service land(s). That means you’d need many years of capital to simply go through the permitting process. Endangered Species Study, Air Permit, Waste Water Permit, will you need a brine solution to induce steam?…large or small quantity generator permit, and on and on and on. You see, we have the ability to produce green energy. The reason the free market has decided to not pursue it relentlessly it because the time-line and expense due to regulations makes it not make sense financially. Subsidies are a joke. The only thing being subsidized is the inflated CEO salaries of “green energy” companies who have begun the permitting process and will likely be bankrupt prior to any permit being issued. If the government really wanted this, they’d cut the red tape. But, they don’t, and they won’t. The government makes more money demanding more paperwork for “review” than they do by actually promoting energy projects through cooperation.
How many times can people fall for the “subsidy” and “guaranteed loan” bit from politicians before they finally get it? Do you need to apply for a common sense permit? Better get going, It’ll take a while.
johnclarke on November 03 at 10:36 p.m.
I dare any “green energy” advocate to locate a plot of land suitable for geothermal energy production, and attempt to apply for the required permits
Have you ever tried ?
gmorton on November 04 at 10:12 a.m.
johnclarke wrote,
“I think you need to do a little research on mining rights and leases. Often they are simply given away.”
Oh, I have. Yes, per the 1972 Mining Law any person may lay claim to a mineral deposit, provided he actively worked the deposit. That was, after all, the reason Louisiana and other Western territories were acquired – in order to place them into the hands of individuals who would make them productive. That aim motivated the Homestead Acts and the railroad land grants, as well as the mining act.
That was, of course, before the appearance of lefties who believed all lands claimed by the government should be leased to entrepreneurs in order to finance free lunches for couch potatoes.
bpackley on November 04 at 1:33 p.m.
Here we go again! the idiot Labrador wants to CUT taxes for corporations like Big Oil! He also says to let the free market play out and let consumers decide! Riiiiiiight! I want to buy a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle because they are pretty cool actually! But, the only place I can get one is in Riverside County, California! (I don’t want to live there.) Why? Because our government is too busy spending money for Big Oil projects instead of transforming this country into an energy independent country! If we really had a choice and hydrogen fuel cells were made available all over this country, most of us would pick hydrogen because it is clean, cheaper than gasoline, and actually safer than gasoline! Our military could run on OUR OWN oil produced by this country! Heck! If we were really smart, we would get with other countries like Canada and some EU oil producers and create a second oil cartel and give OPEC a run for their money!!!
But sadly no, … … none of our elected moron crooks have this type of vision. All they see is the only to keep their pockets lined with fresh Franklins’ is to keep Big Oil happy!!
What a shame! A missed opportunity to put this country back on track as a manufacturing powerhouse!
goatgirl on November 07 at 12:44 p.m.
Let the “free” market determine our energy policy - that’s rich! Pun intended. If there are no other concerns, it’s clear that many individuals & companies will drill, dig, frack, cut, burn & destroy everywhere for every single pound of fossil fuel left on the planet, regardless of consequences. Making a profit from these materials & manufacturing products dependent on these finite resources is their sole focus. It can’t continue. The question is: when do we all decide that has to stop….when it affects us personally, when things quit functioning “normally” some year. It’s clear that massive disasters, oil spills that poison the environment for decades, extinction of species, permanent destruction of natural beauty are only a dramatic news story for a few days or weeks, then all is forgotten. What’s it gonna take, Rep. Labrador?