Bob Dinneen, CEO, Renewable Fuels Association
There was a frenzy of activity in Washington, D.C. leading up to the New Year. The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 passed by Congress on New Year’s Day includes the extension of key renewable fuel tax credits which starts the new year off well for biofuels, according to Renewable Fuels Association CEO Bob Dinneen.
“The cellulose producer tax incentive, the accelerated depreciation for cellulosic fuels, the alternative fuel infrastructure tax credit, and the biodiesel tax credit – all of these are extraordinarily helpful in terms of sending a signal to the investment community that government support for these new alternative fuels is going to remain constant and will continue to be there.”
And while there is some frustration among investors over a one-year extension rather than a five to seven year deal, Dinneen says the “battleground that is the United States Congress” right now just did not make that feasible. Moreover, Congress was only interested in a one-year deal. He is, however, optimistic that Congress does recognize American’s discouragement and will be more proactive overall throughout the course of this year.
“You’ve got 90 new members coming in to the House of Respresentatives and you’ve got 20-some odd new members to the United States Senate. Hopefully, they come in with an understanding that Americans are darn frustrated with the fractured nature of our politics and that we have to work together in a bipartisan way on important national priorities. I’m hopeful that with a new Congress, we’ll be able to be just as successful and will be able to keep the biofuels agenda moving forward.”
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