Bill offers tax incentives to rail expansion

Bill offers tax incentives to rail expansion    A bill introduced last week would provide tax incentives to railroads expanding capacity.
   The Association of American Railroads (AAR) praised the introduction of the Freight Rail Infrastructure Capacity Expansion Act of 2010 (S.3749) by Sens. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and John Ensign, R-Nev.
   The bill would provide a 25 percent tax credit for capacity expansion expenditures on new freight infrastructure, and the ability to expense all qualifying rail infrastructure capital expenditures, which the AAR said would accelerate the availability of capital necessary to expand capacity.
   'This bill offers incentives for our highly capital-intensive business,” said Edward R. Hamberger, AAR president and chief executive officer.
   AAR said incentives in the bill are also available to rail network users such as shippers, trucking companies and ports. Qualifying expenditures can include track, grading, tunnels, signals, train control devices, locomotives, bridges, yards, terminals and intermodal transfer and transload facilities.
   AAR said the bill is a companion to H.R. 1806, introduced last year by U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, D-Fla., which has 100 cosponsors in the House.