During congressional committee work on the Biden administration’s $3.5 trillion “build back better” bill, majority-party House Democrats approved a $35 billion expansion of child nutrition programs last week and were expected to vote on Monday for an additional $66 billion for forestry, rural economic development and agricultural research.
And on Tuesday, tax breaks will be considered for renewable energy, including extension of the $1-a-gallon biodiesel excise tax credit through 2031 and creation of a $1.25-a-gallon blenders tax credit for sustainable aviation fuel that reduces emissions by at least 50 percent. The aviation fuel credit would expire at the end of 2031.
The total for action in three committees could top $100 billion by the end of Monday, with the money to be spent over several years.
House Agriculture chairman David Scott said he was working with the Congressional Budget Office “on $28 billion in conservation funding and climate-smart investments for farmers and ranchers” for inclusion “when this package is take up on the House floor.” If it is, the total for public nutrition and agriculture programs would be around $130 billion.
Party-line votes were expected as the Agriculture Committee completed work on 30 Republican amendments on Monday, the final step before voting on its $66 billion bill. The amendments were defeated on voice votes during a nine-hour meeting that ended after 10 p.m. ET on Friday. The amendments included proposals to remove funding for a Civilian Climate Corps, a Biden initiative, and to block any change in the “stepped-up basis” tax break shields heirs from capital gains taxes on assets such as farm land. Farm groups oppose proposals to modify the tax break. The Agriculture Committee does not have jurisdiction over tax law.
Scott described the marathon Friday session as “very spirited and productive.” Various Republicans said it was “a disgusting process,” part of a “socialist agenda” and a frightening departure from bipartisanship. “You’ve got another thing coming,” said Republican Austin Scott of Georgia, if Democrats expected cooperation on raising the national debt limit. House Republicans voted uniformly against, and Democrats solidly in favor of, the budget resolution on Aug. 24 that opened the door for the $3.5 trillion “build back better’ bill.
Last week, the Education and Labor Committee approved an estimated $35 billion expansion of child nutrition programs. They include creation of a Summer EBT program that would give low-income households $75 per month per child to buy nutritious food, beginning in 2022 and ending in 2029. At present, only 1 in 7 children who qualify for free or reduced-price school meals participate in USDA summer food programs.
The legislation also would make it easier for schools to participate in the the community eligibility provision, which allows schools in high-poverty areas to serve meals for free to all students. During the 2019-20 school year, 15 million children, or 1 in 4 students in elementary and secondary schools, received free meals through the provision, said the think tank Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
The Ways and Means Committee is scheduled to vote on clean energy provisions on Tuesday while considering four sections of its reconciliation package. Besides extension of the biodiesel tax credit and creation of the tax credit for sustainable aviation fuel, the provisions include tax credits of up to $12,500 for buyers of new electric vehicles (EVs), capped at 50 percent of the purchase price. Used EVs would be eligible for credit of $2,500 or 30 percent of the sales price. Electric bicycles would qualify for a $1,500 tax credit if they cost less than $8,000.
Last week, the White House set a target of U.S. production of at least 3 billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel by 2030 as part of mitigating climate change. Civilian aviation accounts for 11 percent of transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions in the country. “Without increased action, aviation’s share of emissions is likely to increase as more people and goods fly,’ said the White House. “That is why leadership and innovation in this sector is so essential if we hope to put the aviation industry, and the economy, on track to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.”
A House Agriculture Committee summary of its reconciliation package is available here.
A section-by-section description of green energy provisions under consideration by the House Ways and Means Committee is available here. The provisions begin on page 9.