Monday, February 23, 1998
2:00 - 3:30 p.m.
Room 708, Hart Senate Office Building

You are invited to a briefing on tax incentives included in the Administration's Climate Change Technology Initiative, a part of the Administration's proposed 1999 budget to stimulate adoption of emerging technologies and further innovation in key sectors of the U.S. economy. The initiative consists of $3.6 billion over five years in tax incentives, as well as $2.7 billion over five years for increased R & D and deployment of particular energy efficiency, renewable energy and carbon-reduction technologies.

The proposal includes tax incentives for these technologies in buildings, vehicles, industrial processes, and electric power generation. For buildings, the Administration proposes tax credits for purchasing new energy-efficient homes, investment in highly energy-efficient heating and air conditioning equipment, and purchasing rooftop solar equipment. For transportation, tax credits would be available for the purchase of automobiles, minivans, sport-utility vehicles, and light trucks that can achieve two to three times the fuel efficiency of comparable vehicles currently being sold. Also, to encourage greater use of mass transit and reduce traffic congestion and transportation-related energy use, the Administration proposes making the exclusion for employee transit and vanpool benefits equal to the parking benefits exclusion.

The Administration also proposes a tax credit for the industrial sector for combined heat and power (CHP) systems that produce both electricity and process heat and/or mechanical power from the same energy source, as well as tax credits for certain circuitbreaker equipment and for equipment used to recover or recycle certain greenhouse gases used in semiconductor production. To stimulate greater generation of electricity from renewable sources, the Administration has proposed extending for five years the tax credit for electricity produced from wind and biomass.

The speakers at this briefing will include:

• Karl Sholz, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tax Analysis, U.S. Department of the Treasury;

• Joseph Romm, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, Department of Energy;

• Brig Pari, Tax Counsel, U.S. Senate Finance Committee;

• Gregory J. Dana, Vice President and Technical Director, Association of International Automobile Manufacturers;

• Howard Geller, Executive Director, American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy; and

• Scott Sklar, Executive Director, Solar Energy Industries Association.

This briefing is free, open to the public and requires no reservation. For further information call the Environmental and Energy Study Institute at (202) 662-1886.