AFBF Voices Support for Short Line Railroad and Biodiesel Tax Credit Extensions

Congressional action is needed to extend tax provisions that promote the production of biodiesel and support the sustainability of short line railroads, American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall said in a letter urging senators to support the Tax Extender and Disaster Relief Act of 2019 (S. 617). The measure would restore these provisions for 2018 and extend them through 2019.

“Tax incentives that encourage further development and use of renewable fuels and renewable energy benefit our nation and aid the agriculture sector. The certainty of a multi-year extension will provide the biodiesel industry with the stability it needs for long term planning and strategic investment,” Duvall wrote.

Similarly, a multi-year extension of the short line railroad credit is also warranted. Farmers and ranchers depend on short line railroads to deliver their products to market and to supply them with the inputs they need to run their businesses.

“Tax incentives for track maintenance help to upgrade and continue local rail service that connects rail customers to the national mainline rail network,” Duvall said.

Farm Bureau sent a separate letter to the bill’s authors, Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), thanking them for leading the effort to “provide stability and certainty to businesses that strengthen rural America.”