Baucus Explores Options to Streamline Energy Tax System

Finance Chairman will address implications of performance?based approach for energy tax measures

Washington, DC – Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) convened a hearing today to review the U.S. system of energy tax incentives and consider the implications of moving toward an energy tax structure that better links credits and incentives to metrics such as fuel efficiency or carbon emissions as opposed to specific technologies. Congress established the system of energy tax incentives to encourage the use and development of domestic alternative energy as a means of reducing dependence on foreign oil, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and stimulating job growth in the renewable energy and energy efficiency sector.

“Today we opened some interesting avenues for discussion of how we support the growth of alternative energy and the tax treatment of traditional energy, and I will continue to review the issue in the coming months,” Baucus said. “These credits amount to billions of dollars in taxpayer funds and I want to make sure that those funds are spent wisely. We must act judiciously as we address the energy issue, and particularly as it relates to the goal of technology neutrality in energy tax.”

The Senate Finance Committee has jurisdiction over all U.S. tax policy.

###

• Print
• Email
• Tweet