CD261: Inflation Reduction Act

The Inflation Reduction Act is a new law designed to hasten the United States’ energy transition (and do nothing about inflation). In the last episode before the midterm election, learn about the energy path the Democratic Party has plotted for us and learn how this new law can possibly save you tens of thousands of dollars.

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View the show notes on our website at https://congressionaldish.com/cd261-inflation-reduction-act

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Jen Podcast Appearances

EP 63 Honest Government Analyst Jennifer Briney talks Privilege, White House & Hotels. The Living Numbers Podcast with Tony Rambles.

Disaster - Jennifer Briney. A Word with Tom Merritt.

Background Sources

Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes

CD259: CHIPS: A State Subsidization of Industry

CD250: Congress Saves the Postal Service

CD246: BIF: Appalachian Chemical Storage

CD240: BIF The Infrastructure BILL

CD218: Minerals are the New Oil

CD205: Nuclear Waste Storage

CD146: Repeal & Replace

CD048: The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)

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Tax Credits and Refunds

Home Energy Efficiency Tax Credits

“Tax Credits for Energy Efficient Home Improvements.” eFile.

Rocky Mengle. Sept 16, 2022. “Save More on Green Home Improvements Under the Inflation Reduction Act.” Kiplinger.

“Federal Income Tax Credits and Other Incentives for Energy Efficiency.” Updated Aug 18, 2022. Energy Star.

Electric Appliance Rebates

“Quick Facts: United States.” U.S. Census Bureau.

Electric Car Tax Credit

26 U.S. Code § 30D - Clean vehicle credit. Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute.

Alternative Fuels Data Center. “Electric Vehicles with Final Assembly in North America.” U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Kelley R. Taylor. Oct 18, 2022. “EV Tax Credits Are Changing: What’s Ahead.” Kiplinger.

Greg Iacurci. Oct 15, 2022. “The 'bummer' of the $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit: Its full value may be hard to get.” CNBC.

John Bozzella. Aug 5, 2022. “What If No EVs Qualify for the EV Tax Credit? It Could Happen.” Alliance for Automotive Innovation.

John Bogna. Jun 22, 2022. “Hydrogen-Powered Cars: Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles Explained.” PCMag.

U.S. Geological Survey. “Mineral Commodity Summaries 2021.” U.S. Department of the Interior.

“OFAC Sanctioned Countries.” Princeton University Research & Project Administration.

Alternative Fuel vehicle refueling property credit

Kelley R. Taylor. Sept 14, 2022. “The Federal Tax Credit for Electric Vehicle Chargers is Back.” Kiplinger.

26 U.S. Code § 30C - Alternative fuel vehicle refueling property credit. Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute.

Hydrogen

Catherine Clifford. Sep 8, 2022. “The clean hydrogen energy economy was a dream. The climate bill could make it a reality this decade.” CNBC.

Emma Ochu et al. Jun 17, 2021. “Hydrogen Fact Sheet: Production of Low-Carbon Hydrogen.” Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, Center on Global Energy Policy.

“Lisa Murkowski.” Open Secrets.

Jay Bartlett and Alan Krupnick. December 2020. “Decarbonized Hydrogen in the US Power and Industrial Sectors: Identifying and Incentivizing Opportunities to Lower Emissions.” Resources for the Future.

24/7 Wall St. Feb 16, 2020. “How Many Gas Stations Are In U.S.? How Many Will There Be In 10 Years?” Market Watch.

Health Care

“The Inflation Reduction Act Lowers Health Care Costs for Millions of Americans.” Oct 5, 2022. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

“Inflation Reduction Act: CMS Implementation Timeline.” 2022. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Carbon Capture

Angela C. Jones and Ashley J. Lawson. Oct 5, 2022. “Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) in the United States.” Congressional Research Service.

Emily Pontecorvo. Aug 22, 2022. “Will the Inflation Reduction Act jumpstart carbon capture?” Grist.

“Global Status of CCS 2021.” 2021. Global CCS Institute.

“Carbon capture and storage could also impact air pollution.” Nov 17, 2011. European Environment Agency.

Offshore Wind Leases

Abby Husselbee and Hannah Oakes. Aug 25, 2022. “The IRA Offshore Energy Leasing Provisions’ Potential Impacts.” Harvard University Environmental & Energy Law Program.

“Memorandum on the Withdrawal of Certain Areas of the United States Outer Continental Shelf from Leasing Disposition.” Sept 8, 2020. The White House.

Fossil Fuels

David Jordan. Oct 6, 2022. “Interior moves forward with oil and gas drill site leasing.” Roll Call.

“Inflation Reduction Act Fossil Fuel Provisions.” Aug 18, 2022. Enersection.

30 U.S. Code § 226 - Lease of oil and gas lands. Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute.

The Associated Press. Apr 16, 2022. “Biden increases oil royalty rate and scales back lease sales on federal lands.” NPR.

Taxes

Kelley R. Taylor. Oct 10, 2022. “The Inflation Reduction Act and Taxes: What You Should Know.” Kiplinger.

“Inflation Reduction Act includes 15% corporate minimum tax on book income.” August 16, 2022. EY.

Jacob Bogage. Aug 12, 2022. “The new Wall Street tax key to Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act.” The Washington Post.

Peter Warren. Aug 11, 2022. “‘Inflation Reduction Act’ Holds the SALT.” Empire Center.

“Lobbying: Intuit Inc.” Open Secrets.

“CBO Cost Estimate: H.R. 1 - the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.” November 13, 2017. Congressional Budget Office.

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The Law

H.R.5376 - Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

“Summary: Estimated Budgetary Effects of H.R. 5376, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.” Revised August 5, 2022. Congressional Budget Office.

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Audio Sources

Full Committee Hearing On Opportunities and Challenges in Deploying Innovative Battery and Non-Battery Technologies for Energy Storage

September 22, 2022 Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

Witnesses:
Tim Hemstreet, Managing Director for Renewable Energy Development, PacifiCorp
Spencer Nelson, Managing Director, Research and New Initiatives, ClearPath
Ted Wiley, President and Chief Operating Officer, Form Energy

19:19 Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV): When it comes to storage, there has rightly been a focus on the supply chain, particularly for lithium ion batteries that power electric vehicles and phones in our pockets and many other modern technologies. While we have benefited from the use of this important battery chemistry, the fact that China is responsible for 75% of global lithium ion battery production, including 60% of the world's cathode production and 80% of the world's anode production, should give everyone pause. That is why I was proud to champion Inflation Reduction Act which incentivized the onshoring of the entire battery supply chain, from the production and processing of raw materials, to the battery pack assembly and everything in between.

Full Committee Hearing On Domestic Critical Mineral Supply Chains

March 31, 2022
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

Witnesses:
Dr. Steve Fortier, Director, USGS National Minerals Information Center, U.S. Department of the Interior
Scott Melbye, President, Uranium Producers of America
Julie Padilla, Chief Regulatory Officer, Twin Metals Minnesota
Abigail Wulf, Vice President, Critical Minerals Strategy and Director of the Center for Critical Minerals Strategy, Securing America's Future Energy
Dr. Paul Ziemkiewicz, Director, West Virginia Water Research Institute, West Virginia University

24:14 Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV): It makes no sense to remain beholden to bad actors when we have abundant resources in manufacturing know-how here in the United States. And make no mistake, we are beholden, particularly when it comes to many of the minerals that go into clean energy technologies. That is why I've sounded the alarm about going down the path of EVs alone and advocated for equal treatment for hydrogen

45:08 Abigail Wulf: As things stand, without some significant course corrections on America's critical minerals enterprise, the leading automobile power won't be the United States. It will be China. Not because of superior design or technology, but because of their massive head start and established market power, if not utter dominance, in all aspects of the supply chain that powers these [electric] vehicles. But simply mining alone does not begin to address the fundamentals of America's mineral supply chain challenge. Where we are most lacking and where China is most dominant is in that crucial but largely hidden processing phase and midstream component production. We simply can't dig up a rock and stick it in a Tesla. You have to crush it, smelt it, and refine it into precursor material that has been sold to somebody else to turn it into battery guts, namely cathodes, anodes and electrolytes. Today, the United States has less than 4% of all minerals processing capacity and makes 0% of the world's cathodes and anodes. By contrast, China is the world's largest processor of copper, nickel, cobalt, lithium and rare earth elements, and they control 60% of anode production and 40% of global cathode production. Consider that in 2019, about 70% of the world's cobalt supply was mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but more than 70% of that cobalt was refined in or controlled by China.

Full Committee Hearing On Clean Hydrogen

February 2, 2022
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

Witnesses
Dr. Sunita Satyapal, Director, Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office, Hydrogen Program Coordinator, U.S. Department of Energy
Dr. Glen Richard Murrell, Executive Director, Wyoming Energy Authority
Jonathan Lewis, Senior Counsel and Director of Transportation Decarbonization, Clean Air Task Force
Michael J. Graff, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, American Air Liquide Holdings, Inc.
Brian Hlavinka, Vice President, New Energy Ventures, Corporate Strategic Development, Williams

21:07 Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV): However, we have some challenges to tackle in order to build a clean hydrogen economy. Producing hydrogen without emissions is two to six times the cost of current production methods. Also, retrofitting end-use applications to use hydrogen as a feedstock, from chemical plants to cars and trucks, will take huge investments from both public and private sectors. This is the demand that we need to develop hydrogen markets that can sustain themselves. The other big challenge is the safe and efficient transport and storage of large volumes of hydrogen, given its physical properties. There's a lot of promising work being done in this space and will allow us to leverage our vast natural gas pipeline network to transport hydrogen to market.

22:00 Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV): That is why I made research, development, and demonstration of these technologies a central part of the Energy Infrastructure Act, which this committee reported with bipartisan support last year, and which was subsequently included in the recently enacted Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In that bill, we fund $9.5 billion in research, development and demonstration of clean hydrogen, and we tasked the Department of Energy to develop a national strategy and a roadmap to get us to a clean hydrogen economy.

27:25 Sen. James Lankford (R-OK): I'm concerned that the conversation around green versus blue hydrogen will pit technologies against each other rather than working together to establish a robust hydrogen marketplace. The simple truth right now is that 95% of hydrogen produced in the United States is made from natural gas.

1:42:00 Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK): Can you share what the administration's policy is with regards to converting natural gas to hydrogen? We recognize that there are some within the [Biden] administration, certainly some groups that may have influence on the administration, who are very firm about not using fuel sources like natural gas. So the question is, is there a role for conversion to play? And what might we anticipate with regards to support and funding that might come with it? Dr. Sunita Satyapal: Thank you again for the question. And as mentioned, with hydrogen shot, we're really looking at all of the pathways. It's really about clean hydrogen. So whether it's natural gas, carbon feedstocks, nuclear renewables, you know, any pathway to get to the low carbon intensity, we're really pivoting away from the colors. There's a lot of complexity: green, blue, purple, turquoise….Pyrolysis is another approach. In fact, our loan program office just announced financing of $1 billion solid carbon, which is another value added product, no need for the CCS portion. So definitely an all-of-the-above strategy needed to meet all of our goals.

Full Committee Hearing to Examine Development and Deployment of Large-Scale Carbon Dioxide Management Technologies

July 28, 2020
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

Witnesses:
Steven Winberg, (Former) Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy at the US Department of Energy
Shannon Angielski, Executive Director of the Carbon Utilization Research Council
Dr. Julio Friedmann, Center on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University

25:06 Dr. Julio Friedmann: Net zero means that any residual emissions must be balanced by removal, as Secretary Moniz said. It means that reduction of co2 emissions and removal of co2 emissions are complementary but distinct actions and that both are necessary. The National Academies and the IPCC find that this must be done at enormous scale exceeding the size of the global oil and gas industry today. We are not where we need to be to make this real.

48:35 Shannon Angielski: In addition, the International Energy Agency modelled the contributions of different technologies to meet that mid-century 2 degree scenario. And it shows that CCUS accounts for approximately 100 Giga tons of needed global co2 emissions reductions by 2060. To put this into perspective, this would be achieved by the operation of 1100 carbon capture systems on the equivalent of 500 megawatt coal fired units, or 3200 natural gas combined cycle units, which would need to be operating for the next 30 years.

1:59:00 Steven Winberg: The rest of the world is going to continue using fossil energy, whether it's coal or oil or natural gas. And that's why we have moved forward quickly on the coal first program, because it offers the opportunity for what I think of as 21st century coal. Right now the Chinese own the space in power generation — coal fired power generation. We have an opportunity to take technology and springboard over what the Chinese are building, which is basically 1970s vintage technology that we built, and they now have improved slightly, but they're selling it around the world, to countries that have coal under their feet, and they're going to continue using that coal. But with the coal first program, we can move into power generation, and we can move into hydrogen production, because these countries also, as they build out their transport sector, may not do it the same way that developed countries, they may move more swiftly into hydrogen. And so there's an opportunity there to take our technology using their natural resources that are under their feet, and produce zero emitting power generation and zero emitting hydrogen and perhaps even net negative hydrogen and net negative electricity and they can use that hydrogen in the transportation sector as well as the industrial sector.

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Cover Art

Design by Only Child Imaginations

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Music Presented in This Episode

Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito