Want a tax break? Get out the bike

We’ve been hearing about the plight of people on "Main Street” a lot lately, so I decide to wade through the financial rescue bill — the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act — to see what’s in it for working people away from the turmoil created by financial engineers.

There’s plenty of credits and tax breaks, among them incentives for energy efficiency and residential use of alternative energy. Provisions for disaster relief for victims of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike and extension of some Katrina benefits also were piled in.

But I also encountered this little gem: Transportation Fringe Benefit To Bicycle Commuters.

Inside the $700 billion rescue package is a reimbursement provision for bicycling to work. No kidding. It’s part of $110 billion in tax breaks that were added to the original bill.

How it works

Any employee who uses a bicycle to get to and from work can be reimbursed for "reasonable expenses,” such as the purchase of the bicycle, improvements and repairs to it, and for storage.

Employees could get $20 for each month they use their bicycle to commute to work.

Woo hoo!

Seriously, why did they even bother with that? And why stop with a bicycle? How about roller skates or a rickshaw?

Bicycling to work is among those benefits that loaded down the bill, with other quirky provisions such as an exemption from excise tax for wooden arrows designed for use by children; increasing the limit on excise tax on rum; and extension of a wool research trust fund.

It’s not surprising taxpayers were outraged.

With no bike paths along major Oklahoma thoroughfares, I don’t know anyone who would jump at a chance to ride to work for $20 a month.