38 Republicans call for 'full repeal' of Democrats' energy tax credits

A group of Republicans called for a “full repeal” of energy tax credits passed by Democrats in 2022 in a Thursday letter.

Their letter comes after a different group of 21 Republicans, mostly moderates, called for changes to be “targeted and pragmatic” in March, and four senators expressed opposition to a “full-scale” repeal last month. 

The two letters underscore the challenges GOP leaders face amid divisions in their caucus as they try to come up with a major budget deal to advance their priorities. 

In the latest letter, the 38 Republicans criticized the approach of their colleagues, saying it would be hypocritical to retain some credits for low-carbon energy sources while eliminating others. 

“Despite our previously unified stance, some Members of our conference now feel compelled to defend wind and biofuel credits, advocate for carbon capture and hydrogen subsidies, or protect solar and electric vehicle giveaways. Keeping even one of these subsidies opens the door to retaining all eight. How do we retain some of these credits and not operate in hypocrisy?” the lawmakers wrote. 

“The longstanding Republican position has been to allow the market to determine energy production. If every faction continues to defend their favored subsidies, we risk preserving the entire IRA because no clearly defined principle will dictate what is kept and what is culled,” they added, referring to the Inflation Reduction Act, the Democrats’ 2022 climate, tax and health care bill.

Their letter, which was first reported by Fox News, also comes as Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has struck a middling tone, saying in February that the Republican party’s approach would be “somewhere between a scalpel and a sledgehammer.”

It’s not entirely clear what impact the intraparty divisions will have, if any, on the party’s ability to get budget legislation across the finish line.

The Inflation Reduction Act included hundreds of billions' worth of tax credits for energy sources, including solar, wind, biofuels, nuclear, hydrogen and carbon capture, as well as electric vehicles, as part of an effort to combat climate change.