[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 159 (Thursday, October 29, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S10927]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. SPECTER (for himself and Mr. Casey):
  S. 2081. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 
accelerate locomotive fuel savings nationwide and provide incentives 
for owners of high polluting locomotives to replace such locomotives 
with newly-built or newly-remanufactured fuel efficient and less 
polluting locomotives; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, I have sought recognition to describe 
legislation I have introduced that will help businesses, sustain and 
create jobs, spur economic development for a struggling industry and 
benefit the environment.
  The locomotive industry in the U.S. directly employs over 125,000 
people and supports a wide-range of secondary industries which 
contribute to the locomotive manufacturing process through operations 
located around the country. This vital industry has experienced a 
significant decline in business over the past several years, which has 
regrettably resulted in furloughs and layoffs. It is my understanding, 
though, that these circumstances are not due to a lack of demand for 
new locomotives, but rather, yet another symptom of our Nation's weak 
economy and insufficient capital among potential customers.
  Accordingly, I along with my colleague Senator Bob Casey, have 
introduced the Locomotive Fleet Investment and Tax Credit Act of 2009. 
This legislation will provide a tax credit for the acquisition of new 
and newly remanufactured locomotives, including freight, long-haul, 
passenger, and switch locomotives. The tax credit we have proposed is 
substantial but time-limited, so as to have the maximum impact in short 
order. The bill provides a tax credit of 30 percent of the purchase 
cost of a new or newly manufactured locomotive, but stipulates that the 
new locomotives must be placed in service before December 31, 2013, to 
qualify for the credit.
  In addition to the economic impact, the Locomotive Fleet Investment 
and Tax Credit Act will also benefit the environment, as new and newly 
manufactured locomotives are typically more fuel efficient and emit 
fewer harmful pollutants. Moreover, new locomotive models are often 
more reliable and have better safety records. In short, it is in the 
best interest of operators, manufacturers and the general public to 
remove from the rails as many old, outdated rail cars as possible and 
replace them with new locomotives.
  Our economy has suffered through a crisis of historic proportions, 
and though there are early signs of recovery, conditions are still 
grim. On October 2, 2009, the Department of Labor reported that 
national unemployment had risen to 9.8 percent, with the loss of 
260,000 jobs in September and the total loss of 7.2 million jobs since 
the recession began. The rail industry and America's manufacturing base 
has been hard hit by the economic downturn and the Federal Government 
ought to help foster an environment in which these businesses can 
rebound and thrive once again. I am confident that our economy will 
indeed improve, and when it does, it is important that our country 
still has a robust capacity to manufacture locomotives domestically.
  The Locomotive Fleet Investment and Tax Credit Act of 2009 will 
provide a much-needed boost to locomotive manufacturers, sustain and 
create jobs and help establish a safer, environmentally friendlier and 
more reliable rail industry.
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