HELENA, Mont. (AP) – U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer are urging Congress to extend a production tax credit for the wind power industry.

Salazar and Schweitzer said in a call with reporters Friday that energy producers aren’t able to plan for next year and beyond without knowing they can rely on the credits.

Salazar says as many as 37,000 U.S. jobs are at stake. Schweitzer says the extension could affect 50 planned wind projects in Montana.

Their comments come a day after President Barack Obama made a similar request to Congress during a speech in Newton, Iowa. Newtown has become a major manufacturing hub for wind turbines in recent years.

Republicans say the credits haven’t created the jobs that Democrats promised and other measures would have a greater economic impact.

The credit of 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour expires at the end of the year.