Dirty Fuel Giveaways Undermine Clean Energy Economy

On December 17th the House of Representatives passed the Middle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010.

Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune released the following
statement in response:

“The tax bill’s dirty fuel giveaways undermine efforts to move to a clean
energy economy. While the bill contains critical provisions such as an
extension of the Renewable Tax Incentive and transit commuter benefits, it
also includes misguided incentives for liquid coal and corn ethanol which
cause substantial environmental harm. These dirty fuel giveaways are an
unacceptable price extracted by Republicans who want to serve the interests
of the corporate polluters who helped elect them over the interests of
American families. Further, the bill excludes the Advanced Energy
Manufacturing tax credits which help ensure that clean energy investments
create jobs here in the U.S.

“The use and production of liquid coal is incredibly dirty, expensive, and
inefficient – producing two times the carbon pollution as conventional
fuel. Equally inefficient in production is corn ethanol.  Yet, corn ethanol
inexplicably received more than 70 percent of all federal renewable energy
tax incentives last year. That’s taxpayers’ money being spent to support
polluting and inefficient fuels, and it’s unacceptable.

“We cannot solve climate disruption with pork barrel spending for corporate
polluters to spew toxic pollution into our air, and we cannot build a clean
energy economy while spawning huge, dirty energy industries.  We must end
our dangerous dependence on dirty fuels.  The giveaways to corporate
interests for liquid coal and ethanol in this bill go against what
Americans want and what they need to raise healthy children and families.
It is time for Congress to get its priorities right.

“It’s time for Congress to make the health and prosperity of American
families their number one priority by moving our nation off of dirty,
outdated sources of energy, and into a clean energy economy.  This bill
falls woefully short of accomplishing that goal.”

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