Tuesday, February 03, 2009

Senate Stimulus Bill: Energy and Environment

The Senate Appropriations Committee passed the $900 billion American Investment and Recovery Act (S. 336) on January 26, 2009. The Senate Finance Committee passed a $522 billion tax package that includes $31 billion in tax incentives for renewables and energy efficiency. On January 28, the House of Representatives passed the $819 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act,(H.R. 1) by a vote of 244 to 188. Negotiations are currently going on between Senate Republicans and the White House to get the Senate bill passed. If the Senate passes S. 336, the House and Senate will then reconcile the bills.

H.R. 1 includes $72 billion for clean energy programs, and another $20 billion for clean energy tax incentives. S. 336 includes $78 billion in renewables, $50 billion in loan guarantees, which includes loans going for nuclear plants and coal-to-liquids. Coal gets $4.6 billion in the Senate economic stimulus bill. It includes $2 billion for the development of "near-zero emissions" power plants, $1 billion for the Department of Energy's Clean Coal Power Initiative, and $1.6 billion for carbon capture at industrial plants. [Grist] [Center For American Progress]

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