[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 82 (Thursday, May 27, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4539-S4540]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. REID. (for himself, Mr. Ensign, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Tester, 
        Mr. Bennet, and Ms. Klobuchar):
  S. 3438. A bill to promote clean energy infrastructure for rural 
communities; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, in 1935, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt 
signed the Rural Electrification Act to bring electricity to the 
sparsely-populated rural areas of our vast Nation. Today, with advances 
in renewable energy from the sun, the wind, water, and geothermal 
energy beneath the Earth's surface, our rural communities are ready to 
produce clean, renewable electricity and sell it to cities and towns. 
Just as our national highway system grew out of the network of farm 
roads to bring agricultural products to market, our electric 
transmission system needs connections to rural areas to bring our 
abundant rural renewable energy resources to load centers. For example, 
Nye and Lincoln counties in Nevada have the potential to generate more 
solar and wind energy than their small populations can use. Without 
transmission to connect these rural areas to load centers, they cannot 
fully develop their local renewable energy industry and are losing out 
on important opportunities to create jobs and diversify their 
economies.
  That is why I am introducing two bills today to give rural 
communities more options to finance the clean energy infrastructure we 
need to develop our rich renewable resources. These two bills would 
help rural communities fund clean energy infrastructure, which will 
create many short and long term jobs and attract badly needed 
investment in rural Nevada's struggling economy. While Nevada is in an 
especially good position to benefit from this bill, I am pleased to be 
joined by Senators Ensign, Harkin, Tester, Michael Bennet, and 
Klobuchar whose states also have renewable energy resources stranded by 
a lack of transmission.
  Existing government loan and tax-exempt bond programs are available 
to finance rural renewable generation, but not to finance the 
connections between that generation and the high-voltage

[[Page S4540]]

transmission system that carries electricity to load centers. These 
proposed bills would provide three ways to finance important 
transmission for rural renewable generators--through the USDA Rural 
Utilities Service, through modifications to the Clean Renewable Energy 
Bond, CREB, program, and through modifications to the Exempt Facility 
Bonds program.
  As we have seen with the electric and telephone infrastructure 
financed by the USDA Rural Utilities Service since 1935, energy 
infrastructure is crucial to economic development for rural 
communities. Natural gas pipelines crisscross rural communities, but 
small towns near these pipelines lack natural gas today. Some of these 
towns, including some in Nevada, have plans for natural gas 
distribution systems and local economic development that depend on 
access to natural gas. Federal programs to provide loans, loan 
guarantees, or tax-exempt bonds do not fit these plans.
  The USDA does not currently finance these types of projects. My bill 
would allow the USDA to finance natural gas systems to connect rural 
communities to natural gas pipelines. Access to natural gas will 
provide these communities with a clean, efficient energy source, and 
encourage economic development.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 3438

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Clean Transmission for Rural 
     Communities Act of 2010''.

     SEC. 2. TRANSMISSION FOR RENEWABLES.

       (a) Clarification of Qualified Facilities for Clean 
     Renewable Energy Bonds.--
       (1) In general.--Section 54C(d)(1) of the Internal Revenue 
     Code of 1986 is amended by inserting ``, or a facility 
     primarily for the purpose of interconnecting one or more such 
     qualified facilities to a high-voltage transmission line'' 
     after ``electric company''.
       (2) Effective date.--The amendment made by this subsection 
     shall apply to bonds issued after the date of enactment of 
     this Act.
       (b) Tax-exempt Financing of Certain Electric Transmission 
     Facilities.--
       (1) In general.--Subsection (a) of section 142 of the 
     Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended--
       (A) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (14),
       (B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (15) and 
     inserting ``, or'', and
       (C) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(16) qualified electric transmission facilities.''.
       (2) Definition.--Section 142 of such Code is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(n) Qualified Electric Transmission Facilities.--
       ``(1) In general.--For purposes of subsection (a)(16), the 
     term `qualified electric transmission facility' means any 
     electric transmission facility which is--
       ``(A) owned by--
       ``(i) a State or political subdivision of a State, or any 
     agency, authority, or instrumentality of any of the 
     foregoing, providing electric service, directly or indirectly 
     to the public, or
       ``(ii) a State or political subdivision of a State 
     expressly authorized under State law to finance and own 
     electric transmission facilities; and
       ``(B) primarily for the purpose of interconnecting one or 
     more renewable energy facilities to a high-voltage 
     transmission line.
       ``(2) Termination.--Subsection (a)(16) shall not apply with 
     respect to any bond issued after December 31, 2011.''.
       (3) Effective date.--The amendments made by this subsection 
     shall apply to bonds issued after the date of enactment of 
     this Act.
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