Costly Tax Breaks Showered On Dubious ‘Green’ Ventures

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Human Events:

Most taxpayers found a significant chunk of change missing from their recent paycheck thanks to a last-minute congressional scramble to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff, but for many alternative energy companies the deal was a tax break bonanza that will cost the federal government $18 billion in lost revenues over the next decade.

Companies still experimenting with wind to power electricity were the biggest winners landing $12 billion in tax credits that expired on New Year’s Eve.

Another victory was scored by algae growers, who will get $59 million in tax breaks to encourage production of cellulosic biofuel, which still doesn’t actually exist but has been mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use by refineries.

Adding insult to injury, the algae tax break was passed just days before the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufactures petitioned the EPA, again, to waive the cellulosic biofuel mandate because no domestic supply has existed since the requirement went into effect more than five years ago. To bypass the EPA rule, refineries have had to pay millions of dollars in waiver fines.