WASHINGTON, D.C. - The House of Representatives today voted to renew their commitment to America’s energy independence by passing H.R. 5351, the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2008. The bipartisan legislation would end wasteful taxpayer subsidies to large oil and gas companies and use that money to invest in tax incentives that encourage the use and production of renewable energy and energy conservation.
H.R. 5351 includes important tax credits to promote renewable energy production from wind, solar, geothermal, cellulosic ethanol and biofuels and other sources, many of which are set to expire at the end of the year.
"The issues of global warming, climate change and America’s addiction to foreign oil have arisen on our watch and they have reached the level of a national crisis that threatens our health, our economy, and our national security," said Ways and Means Chairman Charles B. Rangel (D-NY). One day our children and grandchildren will ask where we stood when we had the opportunity to chart a new course for America’s energy policy and this bill takes an important first step in that direction.
"If we are to end our dangerous reliance on foreign oil and create the green-collar jobs of tomorrow, we have an obligation to find renewable energy sources" stressed Chairman Rangel. "This bill helps us meet that obligation by encouraging the production and use of new technologies to test the winds, the waters and harness the strength of the sun so that we can tackle the energy challenges that arise on our watch. The world is watching, history is being made and we should not let politics be an impediment to the progress we must make."
