Wind production credit to expire?

The wind power industry is trying to get Congress to extend a production tax credit again.

The federal tax credit goes to operators of large, utility-scale wind turbines. It provides a financial incentive for the first ten years a turbine is operating. The American Wind Energy Association says developers are rushing projects into production before the credit expires at the end of this year. Association spokesman Jeff Anthony says if the credit were extended, firms in Wisconsin and elsewhere that make turbines and components would be able to keep people employed.

Anthony says Congress has been busying fighting over other issues, but his trade group hopes to get the politicians’ attention, perhaps in a lame duck session after the November elections. Some conservatives worry the credit helps the government choose winners and losers in the private sector.