The majority of energy produced in the United States is derived
from fossil fuels. In recent years, however, revenue losses
associated with tax incentives that benefit renewables have
exceeded revenue losses associated with tax incentives benefitting
fossil fuels. As Congress evaluates the tax code and various energy
tax incentives, there has been interest in understanding how energy
tax benefits under the current tax system are distributed across
different domestic energy resources. In 2010, fossil fuels
accounted for 78.0% of U.S. primary energy production. The
remaining primary energy production is attributable to nuclear
electric and renewable energy resources, with shares of 11.2% and
10.7%, respectively. Primary energy production using renewable
energy resources includes both electricity generated using
renewable resources, including hydropower, as well as renewable
fuels (e.g., biofuels). The value of federal tax support for the
energy sector was estimated to be $19.1 billion in 2010. Of this,
roughly one-third ($6.3 billion) was for tax incentives that
support renewable fuels. Another $6.7 billion can be attributed to
tax-related incentives supporting various renewable energy
technologies (e.g., wind and solar). Targeted tax incentives
supporting fossil energy resources totaled $2.4 billion. This
report provides an analysis of the value of energy tax incentives
relative to primary energy production levels. Relative to their
share in overall energy production, renewables receive more federal
financial support through the tax code than energy produced using
fossil energy resources. Within the renewable energy sector,
relative to the level of energy produced, biofuels receive the most
tax-related financial support. The report also summarizes the
results of recently published studies by the Energy Information
Administration (EIA) evaluating energy subsidies across various
technologies. According to data presented in the EIA reports, the
share of direct federal financial support for electricity produced
using coal, natural gas and petroleum, and nuclear energy resources
was similar in 2007 and 2010. Between 2007 and 2010, however, the
share of federal financial support for electricity produced by
renewables increased substantially, and federal financial support
for refined coal disappeared. Projections of the annual cost of
energy-related tax provisions through 2015 show that, under current
law, tax-related support for renewable fuels will effectively
disappear after 2012. The amount of tax-related support for
renewable electricity is also scheduled to decline over time given
the recent expiration of the Section 1603 grants in lieu of tax
credits program and the scheduled expiration of other tax
incentives for renewable electricity, such as the production tax
credit (PTC). The value of energy-related tax provisions that
benefit fossil fuels is projected to remain relatively constant
over time, under current law, as most provisions that benefit
fossil fuels are permanent Internal Revenue Code (IRC) provisions.
General
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