,In a meeting with ethanol industry representatives from across North Dakota, Congressman Earl Pomeroy said he will keep pushing Congress to approve his legislation that would save thousands of energy jobs by extending key tax incentives for American renewable fuels.
Pomeroy convened a roundtable meeting at Tharaldson Ethanol Plant that included representatives of North Dakota’s ethanol plants and agricultural producer organizations. The group discussed issues facing North Dakota’s renewable fuels industry, and how the federal government could help spur production of home-grown fuels that grow the rural economy and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil.
One key issue is the upcoming expiration of critical tax credits that encourage the production of U.S. renewable fuels. The credits are expected to expire at the end of this year, but Pomeroy has introduced bipartisan legislation that would extend them for five years.
“Our renewable fuels industry in North Dakota and across the country is starting to take off, and that’s important for our rural economy and our energy independence,” Congressman Pomeroy said. “Now is not the time to let these tax credits expire. That’s going to cost us energy jobs and set us back in our effort to establish energy independence. I’m going to keep pushing this bill and making the case to Congress that it is critical that we extend these tax credits.”
Industry experts say allowing the incentives to expire would deal a heavy blow to America's home-grown fuel industry. A recent study warned that if the VEETC credit is allowed to expire at the end of this year it would cost 112,000 jobs, 2930 of which are located in North Dakota, and reduce domestic ethanol production by 38 percent. This loss of production would be made up for with imported fuels.
Souce: pomeroy.house.gov
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