Bipartisan Senate group wants more energy manufacturing credits

Several members of the Senate Finance Committee introduced legislation Wednesday that would more than double the cap on tax credits available under the recent stimulus law for manufacturing alternative energy components.

The stimulus enacted early this year created a 30 percent tax credit for investments in new or expanded facilities to make wind turbines, solar panels and other “advanced” energy equipment.

But the program is capped at $2.3 billion, and applications already exceed that level. The new bill from Sens. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) would add another $2.5 billion to the cap, raising it to $4.8 billion.

Bingaman, Hatch and Stabenow are members of the Finance Committee that writes tax policy.

 “Currently, the United States runs an annual ‘green trade deficit’ of almost $9 billion. But the United States should be the world’s No. 1 manufacturer of clean energy technology. This tax incentive will help us move toward that goal,” Bingaman said in a prepared statement.

President Obama endorsed an expansion of the credit in a speech on jobs and the economy earlier this week.