From the APTA Legislative Alert:
On December 31, 2009, the current federal excise tax credit for alternative fuels and alternative fueling infrastructure expires. Transit operators who utilize alternative fuels, including compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquid natural gas (LNG) are eligible for a 50 cent per gallon equivalent tax credit. This tax credit is an important source of revenue for many public transportation agencies that utilize natural gas for a portion or all of their fleet fueling needs. Not only does this provision provide significant offsetting revenues to agencies’ fuel budgets, it further supports the industry goals of enhancing our nation’s long-term strategy for energy security and its contribution to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
Discussions are currently underway to extend the alternative fuels tax credits as part of a larger package of what are known as “tax extenders” – a long list of tax provisions that also expire at the end of the calendar year. It is also possible that the extension of these provisions could be enacted as part of an extension of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible and Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), but it is more likely that they will be passed as part of a “tax extenders” package.
APTA has also endorsed stand-alone legislation – the New Alternative Transportation to Give Americans Solutions Act of 2009 (H.R.1835/S.1408) – that would expand and extend the credits until December 31, 2027 (or 2019 in the Senate bill). To see a copy of APTA’s original letter to the House bill’s sponsor, Representative Dan Boren, click here. H.R. 1835 currently has 117 cosponsors.
It is important that your elected representatives in the U.S. House and Senate hear from APTA members expressing support for the extension of these important provisions of the federal tax code before Congress completes its work for 2009. Please contact your members of Congress, particularly those members who may serve on the House Ways and Means Committee or the Senate Finance Committee (click the committee links to see the list of members), and explain to them the urgent need to renew and expand these important tax credit provisions before the end of the year.