[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 59 (Thursday, May 3, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Page S4262]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LIEBERMAN (for himself, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Schumer, Mr. 
        Hutchinson, Mr. Dodd, Mrs. Clinton, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Carper, 
        Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Levin, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Akaka, and 
        Ms. Mikulski):
  S. 828. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow a 
credit against income tax for certain energy-efficient property; to the 
Committee on Finance.
  Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I am pleased today to join a bipartisan 
coalition of Senators in introducing environmentally friendly 
legislation to encourage the use of fuel cells, a clean and cutting-
edge energy source. If adopted, this bill would provide tax incentives 
to consumers for purchasing residential and commercial fuel cell 
systems to power their electricity. The $1,000-per-kilowatt tax credit 
applies to all types of stationary fuel cell systems and would be 
applicable for 5 years. This is a Senate companion piece to legislation 
introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Nancy 
Johnson last month.
  With oil and gas prices now reaching record highs, I believe fuel 
cells are one excellent answer to our heightened energy demand and 
dependence on foreign oil. The benefits of fuel cell technology are 
many. They are a nearly pollution-free power supply because they 
operate without combustion; they can run on any hydrogen-rich source, 
including propane, natural gas, methane or diesel; they can operate 
independently of a power grid, which is ideal for remote locations, and 
they provide highly reliable, uninterrupted power, making them very 
attractive for applications highly sensitive to power interruptions. 
Currently they are being used at a variety of locations, including a 
New York City police station in Central Park, a major postal facility 
in Alaska, a hotel on Mohegan tribal lands in Connecticut, and in a 
hospital in California.
  Fuel cells have been successfully used since the 1960s. Initially 
they were developed for space applications and have provided all of the 
water and electricity needs in every manned U.S. space mission, 
including the Apollo and Gemini spacecraft. Since this time, they have 
been developed for a wide variety of other applications, including 
commercial, residential, and transportation uses.
  I am pleased to join Senators Snowe, Schumer, Dodd, Hutchinson, 
Clinton, Cantwell, Carper, Dorgan, Leahy, Levin, Harkin, Akaka, and 
Mikulski on this important bill.
  Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleague from 
Connecticut Senator Lieberman, to introduce a bill that will promote 
the expanded use of an environmentally sound and efficient energy 
technology, fuel cell power.
  We all agree with President Bush that we have a crisis situation, 
America's energy future is bleak. Portions of our country are 
experiencing rolling blackouts, fuel prices are skyrocketing, America's 
dependence on imported oil reached a new high of over 60 percent in 
recent months, and our search for additional fossil fuels threatens the 
sanctity of protected wilderness areas. Now is the time to promote long 
term solutions such as fuel cell technology to reduce our fossil fuel 
consumption and maintain a steady supply of energy.
  Fuel cells are not a futuristic dream, every manned U.S. space 
mission has relied upon fuel cells for electricity and drinking water. 
From a New York city police station to a postal facility in Alaska to 
hospitals, schools, banks, military installations, and manufacturing 
facilities around the world, fuel cell units are efficiently generating 
dependable power 24 hours a day, seven days a week for upwards of 5 
years with only routine maintenance.
  Fuel cell technology offers a clean, secure, efficient, and 
dependable source of energy that should be part of our national energy 
strategy. Not only do fuel cells deliver the high quality, reliable 
power that is considered an absolute necessity for many portions of our 
society, they reduce power grid demand while improving grid 
flexibility. Fuel cells are an ideal energy source to address America's 
pressing energy needs.
  Using an electro-chemical reaction to convert energy from hydrogen-
rich fuel sources into electricity, fuel cells reduce the need for 
fossil fuel consumption. And, since no combustion is involved, fuel 
cells produce virtually no air pollution and significantly reduce 
carbon dioxide emissions. In fact, a 200 kilowatt fuel cell power plant 
produces less than one ounce of pollutants for every 1,000 kilowatt 
hours of electricity it yields. In comparison, the average American 
fossil fuel plant produces nearly 25 pounds of pollutants to generate 
the same 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity. That is 400 times the 
amount of the fuel cell power plant.
  However, it is difficult for consumers to take advantage of fuel 
cells because as with any new technology, the introductory price is 
high. To create the market incentives necessary to speed the 
commercialization of this technology, our legislation provides a $1,000 
per kilowatt stationary fuel cell tax credit for power plants that have 
an electrical generation efficiency of 30 percent or higher.
  By lowering the initial price for consumers, market introduction and 
production volume of fuel cells will be accelerated with the end result 
being a significant reduction in manufacturing costs. The decrease in 
price would enable even more consumers to use the one of the cleanest, 
most reliable and most efficient means to generate electricity.

  This fuel cell tax credit is designed to benefit the widest range of 
potential fuel cell customers and manufacturers with a meaningful 
incentive for the purchase of fuel cells for residential and commercial 
use while minimizing the budget impact to $500 million over the 5-year 
life of the program. I hope my colleagues will agree that an annual 
cost of $100 million is a small price to pay for a reliable source of 
power that will benefit the environment and reduce our nation's 
dependence on foreign oil supplies.
  At a time when power shortages and interruptions are becoming more 
prevalent, we must increase our investment and commitment to non-
traditional energy sources such as fuel cells. The reliable, 
combustion-free power fuel cells provide is a sensible alternative that 
is available today. I urge my colleagues to support us in the Fuel Cell 
Tax Credit.
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