Rising interest rates make turning idle cash into passive income much easier. Even low-risk options like bank CDs and government bonds are paying over 5% these days. That can enable investors to earn about $50 of income over the next year for every $1,000 they invest.

While that's a decent amount of money (especially compared to recent years), it might not be sustainable. If rates fall when those investments mature, investors will need to accept a lower payment when they reinvest that money.

Given that potential reinvestment risk, investors might want to consider taking on a little bit more investment risk and lock in a higher (and likely more sustainable) income stream. Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET) certainly fits the bill. The master limited partnership (MLP) currently offers an 8.8% yielding payout (implying it will produce about $88 of annual passive income for every $1,000 investment). Even better, the pipeline giant expects to steadily increase that payout.  

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Source Fool.com