US Senate Set to Decide Energy Bill

A huge debate continues in Washington over a huge energy bill and a Missouri senator says the outcome will have a lot to say about this state’s economic development. Democrats have been critical, not just of the bill, but of how Republicans put it together; locking them out of three months of House-Senate negotiations that crafted a 1,100 page package now the subject of intense debate on the Senate floor. Republicans hope the 50 tax breaks it contains will win over enough Democrats for passage.Senator Talent calls the bio-diesel tax credit groundbreaking. He says it will do for bio-diesel what earlier tax credits did for ethanol. Congress hasn’t passed an energy bill since 1992. This one has been debated for three years. Talent says its emphasis on bio-diesel and ethanol make it a winner for Missouri. Opponents have threatened a filibuster. A vote to end debate is likely to be taken Friday. A head count has indicated that vote will be close.