Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., is none too pleased that the Senate Finance Committee voted to approve legislation to extend expired temporary tax provisions, including a two-year extension of the wind production tax credit.
Alexander, a long time wind opponent, is chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development and a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
‘The committee voted to support the Obama administration's national energy policy that amounts to a national windmill policy,’ says Alexander. ‘Our country uses about 25 percent of the electricity in the world. Relying on windmills to produce that electricity when nuclear power is available is the energy equivalent of going to war in sailboats when nuclear ships are available.
After 22 years of billions of dollars in subsidies, wind still produces only four percent of our electricity and the windmills work only about 35 percent of the time. Nuclear power produces 20 percent of our electricity and 60 percent of our clean electricity. For more jobs and cheap, reliable power, our country needs more nuclear reactors – not more windmills.’
The tax extenders package now awaits action by the full Senate. The bill will also need to be passed by the House and signed by the president before becoming law.
