Rod Grams: “I am proud to join Senator Roth as an original co-sponsor of legislation to amend Section 45 of the tax code for the…”

“I am proud to join Senator Roth as an original co-sponsor of legislation to amend Section 45 of the tax code for the production of electricity from environmentally-friendly methods, including poultry litter, the Poultry Electric Power Act. Mr. President, our nation's poultry consumption continues to grow in rapid numbers. We now produce almost 8 billion chickens a year in the United States. My home State of Minnesota is now the nation's largest producer of turkeys, with an estimated 44 million produced last year alone. According to the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association, Minnesota turkey producers and processors earned 1997 incomes of $180 million and spinoff industries earned $374 million in 1996. In Minnesota, the turkey industry includes 2,810 jobs in production and 4,552 jobs in processing. So, Mr. President, you can see that the poultry industry is extremely important to rural Minnesota. I continue to believe that we must explore a wide variety of alternative energy sources that provide a number of benefits for our nation. First, this bill will provide another market and revenue source for our farmers who so badly need diversified sources of income. Second, the bill will assist our nation in increasing our energy security. Third, this bill will help to improve the environment not only by providing a clean energy source, but by assisting in the disposal of poultry manure in an environmentally friendly way.”