During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin criticized the Treasury Department over the local content rules for clean energy tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Manchin accused Treasury of damaging U.S. manufacturers by halving the content rules from the original law.
“I’m encouraging every manufacturer to sue you, and I will do the amicus brief on (their) behalf …. and you’ll lose every suit,” Manchin stated, displaying posters comparing the legislation’s content requirements with Treasury’s final rules.
Manchin, who recently left the Democratic Party and registered as an independent, has been a vocal critic of what he perceives as partisan extremism in both major parties. He has particularly taken issue with Treasury’s implementation of the IRA, arguing that the final rules have weakened the bill’s original intent and are harming U.S. companies.
Last month, Manchin criticized Treasury’s final rule allowing automakers an additional year to use Chinese graphite and other critical minerals in battery production before switching to domestic sources, stating that it would “break the law.”
Both Manchin and Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema were pivotal in several pieces of legislation early in President Joe Biden’s administration, including a significant infrastructure bill.
Manchin reiterated that the IRA was designed to reduce reliance on Chinese supply chains, but he argued that Treasury’s implementation would allow China to remain “in the market for the entire extent of the IRA.”
In response, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed the Biden administration’s shared concerns about reliance on Chinese supplies and offered to engage in technical discussions with Manchin to address his concerns.
