Energy and Tax Extenders Act of 2008

Current status


Bill summary

 * Extends the renewable energy tax credit by one year for new wind facilities (Sec. 101).


 * Extends the renewable energy tax credit by 3 years for new qualified closed-loop or open-loop biomass facilities, geothermal or solar energy facilities, small irrigation power facilities, landfill gas facilities, trash combustion facilities, and qualified hydropower facilities (Sec. 101).


 * Designates marine and hydrokinetic renewable energy as being qualified energy resources eligible for the renewable energy tax credit (Sec. 102).


 * Extends for 6 years the 30 percent energy tax credit for qualified fuel cell property and solar energy property and the 10 percent credit for microturbine property (Sec. 103).


 * Extends the tax credit for certain new residential "energy efficient" property for 6 years and raises the total tax credit for new solar electric property from $2,000 to $4,000 (Sec. 104).


 * Extends the research tax credit, restaurant property depreciation tax credits, and optional state sales tax deductions for one year (Sec. 221, 225, 201).


 * Extends tax credits for biodiesel and renewable diesel used as fuel for one year, and raises the biodiesel credits and biodiesel mixture credits from 50 cents per gallon to $1 per gallon (Sec. 122).


 * Provides an additional standard deduction for real property taxes for non-itemizers of up to $350 or $700 for a joint return (Sec. 301).


 * Increases the child tax credit for low-income parents (Sec. 302).


 * Delays tax code provisions that would allow companies to allocate interest on a worldwide basis for 10 years (Sec. 402).


 * Mandates that compensation deferred under a nonqualified deferred compensation plan of a foreign corporation shall be includible in gross income in the absence of a substantial risk of forfeiture of rights to such compensation (Sec. 401).

House
On May 21 2008, the House considered a motion to recommit the bill with instructions for the Committee on Ways and Means.



The same day, the House passed the bill by a vote of 263-160.



Senate
The bill, which was introduced May, 14, 2008, hoped to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, which would provide incentives for energy production and conservation, to extend certain expiring provisions, to provide individual income tax relief, and for other purposes. It was voted on by the Senate on September 23, 2008.



The Senate initially failed to invoke cloture and end debate on the bill.



Sens. Max Baucus and Sen. Charles Grassley proposed an amendment to extend tax credits for research.



Information Technology Industry Council, which supported the bill, selected the vote for its 2007 Senate scorecard, where it gave the following description: "Legislation included provisions to extend and expand the research and development tax credit for two years."



On September 23, 2008, the Senate passed the bill as amended by a vote of 93-2. 

However, the bill was never signed into law by the president.

Supporters

 * A. O. Smith Corporation
 * Abbott Laboratories
 * Advanced Micro Devices
 * Advantage Capital Partners
 * Affymetrix
 * Agilent Technologies, Inc.
 * Air Conditioning Contractors of America
 * Air Products and Chemicals
 * Alliance to Save Energy
 * Alliant Energy Corporation
 * Altria Group
 * America Public Power Association
 * American Express Company
 * American Institute of Architects
 * American International Group
 * American Wind Energy Association
 * Apple
 * Association of Educational Publishers
 * AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals
 * AT&amp;T
 * ATAS
 * ATEECO
 * Autodesk
 * Avaya
 * Avista
 * BAE Systems
 * Bank of America
 * Batesville Tool &amp; Die
 * Biogen Idec
 * Boeing
 * Bommer Industries
 * Borel Private Bank &amp; Trust Company
 * Bosch
 * BP
 * Cabot Fuel Cells
 * Case New Holland
 * Caterpillar Inc.
 * Chrysler LLC
 * Chubb Corporation
 * Cisco Systems
 * Citigroup, Inc.
 * Click Bond
 * Coca-Cola Company
 * Con-Way
 * ConAgra
 * Devine Tarbell &amp; Associates
 * DIAB
 * Dow Chemical Company
 * Duke Energy Corporation
 * Edison Electric Institute
 * Empire Broadcasting
 * Environmental Defense Fund
 * Exelon Corporation
 * Extol International
 * FileMaker
 * Florida Power &amp; Light Company
 * Ford Motor Company
 * Fredon Corporation
 * Fresh Energy
 * FuelCell Energy
 * GE Energy
 * General Electric
 * General Motors Corp.
 * Genworth Financial
 * Gilead Sciences
 * GMAC
 * Goldman Sachs
 * Goodrich
 * Greenpeace
 * Griffin Realty Advisors
 * Harley-Davidson Motor Company
 * Hewlett-Packard
 * Honeywell
 * i2 Technologies
 * IBM Corporation
 * Independent Sector
 * Intel Corporation
 * Intevac
 * JDS Uniphase Corporation
 * Johnson &amp; Johnson
 * JPMorgan Chase &amp; Co.
 * Key Bank
 * KPMG LLP
 * LibraryWorld, Inc
 * Lincoln Financial
 * Lockheed Martin
 * Louis Dreyfus
 * Maxim Integrated Products
 * McCormick &amp; Company
 * Merck &amp; Co., Inc.
 * Merrill Lynch
 * Microsoft
 * Mitsubishi Electric
 * Monsanto Company
 * Mortenson Construction
 * National Association of Manufacturers
 * National Biodiesel Board
 * National Electrical Manufacturers Association
 * National Hydropower Association
 * National Retail Federation
 * National School Supply and Equipment Association
 * National Wildlife Federation
 * New Leaf Paper
 * News Corporation
 * North American Insulation Manufacturers Association
 * Northrop Grumman
 * Novo Nordisk
 * Oracle Corporation
 * Pfizer
 * PG&amp;E Corporation
 * Procter &amp; Gamble
 * Raser Technologies
 * Rath, Young and Pignatelli
 * Raytheon
 * Real Estate Roundtable
 * Retail Industry Leaders Association
 * Sealed Air Corporation
 * Sierra Club
 * Solar Energy Industries Association
 * Solar Nation
 * Specialized Bicycles
 * Steel-Fab
 * Texas Instruments
 * Tupperware
 * Union of Concerned Scientists
 * Wachovia
 * Walt Disney Company
 * World Wildlife Fund

Opponents

 * Americans for Tax Reform
 * Associated Builders and Contractors
 * Club for Growth
 * FreedomWorks
 * Independent Electrical Contractors
 * National Taxpayers Union

Articles and resources

 * Congress Daily's article House Dems Issue Ultimatum On Pay/Go On Tax Package 12 Jun 2008.
 * Grist's article No renewal for renewables 10 Jun 2008.
 * Renewable Energy World.com's article U.S. House Passes Renewable Energy Tax Credit Extension Bill 22 May 2008.
 * The Wall Street Journal's article House Votes Tax Breaks For Alternative Energy 22 May 2008.
 * Grist's article Renewables hit the jackpot 21 May 2008.
 * ENewsUSA's Committee Approves Fast-Tracked Energy &amp; Tax Extenders Act 19 May 2008.