I just received a letter in the mail today from Senator Richard Burr regarding a letter I sent him about the biodiesel tax credit some months ago. In it, I stated that the biodiesel tax credit is actually HARMFUL the way it is being currently implemented. That is, letting it lapse for a whole year and then reinstating it retroactively, as Congress has now done three times.
He agreed that Congress should provide businesses more certainty than the current year-to-year extensions we are currently experiencing, but claimed that attempts at longer extensions (like the 3 to 5 year tax credit I proposed) were thwarted by a veto threat from the President.
This is confusing for us in the biodiesel industry, as the President has promised that the renewable energy sector has his full support. That, however, does not appear to be the case. Especially in light of the political games being played with the EPA and the RFS program, which are under the control of the President.
So, at best we can appear to hope for yet again another kicking of the can down the road, and another 1 year biodiesel tax credit for 2015. Hopefully before we see January of 2016…
You can view the Senator Burr Letter here
To add insult to injury, I received a letter from my insurance carrier showing that the “Terrorism Risk Insurance Act” was set to expire on December 31, 2014 but was somehow able to be renewed until December 31, 2020!! It just goes to show you what a powerful lobby can do for your industry. Here’s the letter from the insurance carrier