As part of the Obama administration’s Economic Recovery Plan, the Senate Finance Committee today passed 31 billion in tax breaks and other incentives to boost alternative  supplies and promote energy savings. Warm Home Cool Planet feels this is a step in the right direction.

When compared to the estimated 97 to 215 billion spent per year in military expenses needed to secure oil and natural gas reserves around the globe, though, that 31 billion seems more modest. Some of the things the money will go toward include:

• Doubling the number of plug-in electric vehicles eligible for a purchaser’s tax credit to 500,000.
• Increase the tax credit for service stations that install pumps that dispense alternative energy fuels.
• Give homeowners a tax credit equal to 30 percent (capped at $1,500) of the amount they paid for energy savings improvements.
• Authorize $1.6 billion in new clean renewable energy bonds to finance facilities that generate electricity from wind, biomass, geothermal, small irrigation, hydropower, landfill gas, ocean currents and trash burning.
• Allow states to issue $2.4 billion in conservation tax credit bonds to finance loans and grants to individual homeowners to retrofit existing housing.
• Provide individuals with a 30 percent uncapped tax credit for buying solar water heating property, small wind energy property and geothermal heat pumps.

The Democratic-controlled Congress hopes to work out differences between the Senate and House economic stimulus bills and have a final package on Obama’s desk for his signature into law by February 16.