Despite last-minute changes, Senate bill deals big blow to renewable energy

By Valerie Volcovici

WASHINGTON, July 1 (Reuters) - The Senate's massive budget bill that passed on Tuesday will make it harder to develop wind and solar energy projects, despite removal of some contentious energy provisions, industry advocates and lawmakers said.

The U.S. Senate dropped a proposed excise tax on solar and wind energy projects that don't meet strict standards after last-minute negotiations with key Republican senators seeking better terms for renewables.

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, fellow Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley and Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, whose votes were crucial to the bill's passage, had introduced an amendment calling for removal of that tax, which caught lawmakers by surprise after it made its into the last draft text.