US House passes Energy Bill, including biofuels tax credits; Senate passage unlikely

In Washington, the House of Representatives approved a landmark energy bill, extending the investment tax credit for biofuels and renewable power, and allows oil and gas drilling closer to US coastlines. The bill now moves to the Senate where it is thought to be unlikely to secure passage.

House Republicans objected to the bill, saying that it did not extend oil and gas drilling options enough. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the bill, here, “extends and expands tax incentives for renewable energy, including incentives for plug-in vehicles, and retains and creates hundreds of thousands of American jobs.”

The bill provides funding for LIHEAP, the low-income home heating assistance program, establishes a 15 percent Renewable Portfolio Standard by 2020 for utilities, and extends the investment tax credit for renewables, including the $1 per gallon biodiesel tax credit.

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