U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander Tuesday urged his colleagues to vote for his amendment to S. 3240, the farm bill, that would prevent wind developers from benefiting from both an energy tax credit and new loans or loan guarantees provided in the bill, saying, “Vote yes if you don’t like double-dipping into the federal treasury.”
He released the following statement on the amendment:
“The farm bill the Senate is debating provides new loans, new loan guarantees for wind turbines – on top of the $14 billion in federal tax dollars we’ll spend over the next five years for them – $6 billion through the production tax credit and the other $8 billion through the Section 603 grants. My amendment to the farm bill simply says: no double dipping – if you take advantage of the wind-production tax credit to build windmills, which I oppose, you can't also take advantage of the subsidy through the farm bill.”
Right before the Senate voted on his amendment, Sen. Alexander said on the Senate floor, “If my colleagues think it is a good idea to give rich developers of wind turbines a double dip into the federal treasury at a time when we're borrowing 40 cents of every dollar, then this provision in the farm bill is for you.”
The amendment was defeated 33 to 66.