But one thing about them is easy to summarize: they are heavily tilted toward fossil fuels. Government statistics show that about 70 percent of all federal energy subsidies goes toward oil, natural gas, and coal. Fifteen percent goes to ethanol, the only renewable source of energy that consistently gets bipartisan support in Congress (think farm lobby and Iowa). Large hydro-power companies—TVA, Bonneville Power, and others—soak up another 10 percent. That leaves the greenest renewables—wind, solar, and geothermal—to subsist on the crumbs that are left.Well, not really.
If you take a look at a recent study from the Tax Foundation, a non-partisan, non-profit research firm, the renewable energy sector, which includes wind and solar, received more than quadruple the tax subsidies as compared with the oil and natural gas. Click on the above link to see a graph that illustrates this point.
One of those subsidies Leonard refers to is the Section 199 credit, all corporations, not just energy firms, can benefit from it. Also included in that Leonard calls "the dole" is the dual capacity credit, which exempts corporations from paying taxes on income earned abroad. Such earnings have already been taxed in another country. As I've mentioned before, I benefited from a similar deduction on a mutual fund consisting exclusively of foreign stocks that I owned in the 1990s.
Underneath American soil and near our shorelines is oil and natural gas that the Obama administration is placing beyond our reach with new regulations guided by outright stubbornness. No reasonable person thinks we should increasing our dependence on foreign energy sources.
As for "getting the energy sector off the dole," well, why not have the Obama administration end its war on fossil fuels instead.
Related post:
$5-a-gallon gas coming?
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