House, Senate both extend renewable energy tax credits, but are still at odds

Washington Report: At long last, both House and Senate have extended the renewable energy tax credits due to expire at years’ end. The House passed its bill Friday, the Senate its earlier in the week. But they passed different versions and now have to reconcile them, which seems to be a problem. At issue are:
*The addition of tax credits for oil shale and tar sands refineries and coal-to-liquid in the Senate bill.
*Failure to pay for all credits in the broader Senate bill, which goes beyond energy credits with other business and individual tax credits.
House Dems and environmentalists strongly object to the introduction of credits for fossil fuels. Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.) called oil shale “enormously environmentally damaging.” So are tar sands and coal-to-liquid fuel. On the second point, Blue Dog (conservative) Democrats in the House don’t want to see anything passed that isn’t 100% paid for. The White House favors the Senate bill, despite some taxes on oil, and says it would veto a final bill that looks like the House version. So now the two chambers have to resolve the conflict. Inslee said he thinks that is possible, since a large majority favors the extensions. The Senate Bill passed 93-2. House Dems have passed renewable tax credit extensions without fossil fuels 8 times. (Sources: E&E Daily, E&E News PM)