Detroit Free Press - Tax credit for hybrid cars is confusing Good article, even though AMT considerations were not mentioned. I was particularly interested in this sentence: "Cindy Knight, a spokeswoman for Toyota Motor Sales in Torrance, Calif., said Toyota estimates that 60,000 of these vehicles could be sold by the third quarter of 2006." -------------- Edit: Some bozo forgot to include the link!
One error in the report" “Only the first 60,000 hybrids sold per carmaker -- and the clock starts in 2006 -- will qualify for the full credit. After that, buyers would get a smaller credit and ultimately the credits would vanish for that automaker.†I emailed her to inform her of the error. B)
Washington produced it so of course it's confusing. It's difficult for them to do anything useful for us because they don't live in the real world. <_<
Yeah, but you may not get it if you don't get the Prius before their little quota runs out. I just worry about the people who get their Prius after that and find out that they get nothing for it. I only get a $2000 tax deduction but at least I get it no matter when in 2005 I got my car. Besides, this is starting to sound like one of those free cell phone internet deals. They make you jump through so many hoops and spend so much of your time that if you add it all up, you're barely breaking even.
You are correct and that is the government's intent. The gov't set up the credit this way so that (presumably) less popular U.S. manufacturers would have a competitive advantage over (presumably) popular foriegn manufacturers. And, to be fair, while it is certainly more complicated than a deduction, it isn't really all that complicated. We hear the following prases applied to promotions all the time: "for qualified buyers", "while supplies last", and "for a limited time only". These are exactly the kinds of limitations on the credit. Structuring the credit in this way also allows the government to be better able to estimate and control the cost of the program. This is a bit surprising considering that the current government is on a record spending binge.
I don't know, I think that you're giving them more credit than they deserve. <_< My cynicism may seem a bit much but we'll see how realistic it is when Abramoff starts spilling his guts. Our elected officials are already in heavy duty CTA mode: Congressional ethics panels taking a pass THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON — The leaders of Congress’ ethics committees are not committing to any investigation of misconduct despite growing revelations about the favors lobbyist Jack Abramoff won for clients and the largesse he arranged for lawmakers. The committees, for now, are poised to remain on the sidelines. The House committee, stymied by partisan disagreements, launched no investigations in 2005 even after former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, requested an inquiry into his foreign travel arranged by Abramoff. The lack of commitment to investigate issues about lawmakers’ conduct is raising anew the question of whether Congress can discipline its own. “There have always been questions about whether Congress can police itself,†said Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis who specializes in ethics. “The situation in the House removes all doubt.†The Associated Press asked the four lawmakers who lead the ethics committees whether they would make a commitment to investigate ethical wrongdoing if, as expected, the information Abramoff supplies in a plea agreement exposes misconduct by a number of members of Congress. The two Republican and two Democratic lawmakers declined, through spokesmen, to do so. The House Committee on Standards of Offi cial Conduct is headed by Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash. the top Democrat is Rep. Alan Mollohan of West Virginia. The Senate Select Committee on Ethics is led by Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio. The ranking Democrat is Sen. Tim Johnson of South Dakota. The committees have an equal number of Democrats and Republicans, but forging a bipartisan consensus in ethics investigations often has proved diffi cult. After the House levied a $300,000 fi ne against former Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., for ethical violations in 1997 — payment for part of the cost of investigating his conduct — weary members of both parties declared an ethics truce. For several years, there were no major cases. The House committee revived itself in 2004, admonishing DeLay on three issues. The House Republican leadership reacted by refusing to extend the term of the chairman, Rep. Joel Hefl ey, R-Colo. Last year, Hastings and Mollohan feuded for months over investigative rules and then for months over composition of the staff. The year was gone before the leaders chose the committee’s top staff member. He started work only recently. Abramoff pleaded guilty this month to conspiracy, tax evasion and mail fraud in Washington and to additional charges in Miami. He has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. The committees traditionally defer to prosecutors and do not interfere with criminal investigations.
Don't EVEN get me started on the disgusting government we find ourselves with today! Still, can't say I'm surprised in the least.
There are efforts being made to remove the 60k vehicle limit: Lifting the 60,000 cap on the hybrid tax credit (bill): Senators Evan Bayh (D-IN), Joe Lieberman (D-CT), and Sam Brownback (D-KS) have introduced a broad bill (S. 2025) that would remove the cap on hybrid tax credits as part of a package to reduce domestic oil usage. Representative Jack Kingston (R-SC) and Elliot Engle (D-NY) introduced a similar bill (H.R. 4409) in the House. Representative Chris Shays (R-CT) introduced a broad ranging energy bill (H.R. 4384) that in addition to several incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency across all energy sectors would remove the cap on hybrid tax credits.
Step in the right direction. Now if they can just fix the AMT. They're still a bunch of chuckleheaded dumb****s <_<
What happens if the EPA changes the milage estimates for the Prius? I'm assuming this won't happen quickly being that it is government. I'm guessing it won't affect the tax credit being offered this year. Andy
