Spring forward, Fall back
President Bush Signs Into Law a National Energy Plan
In August 2005, President Bush Signed Into Law The First National Energy Plan In More Than A Decade. The President’s national energy plan will encourage energy efficiency and conservation, promote alternative and renewable energy sources, reduce our dependence on foreign sources of energy, increase domestic production, modernize the electricity grid, and encourage the expansion of nuclear energy.
Background: The Energy Bill Promotes Investments In Energy Conservation and Efficiency
Energy Legislation Encourages Energy Conservation And Efficiency. By supporting new energy efficient technologies, the government can offer every American better energy security at lower costs. More money is being spent on energy efficiency research today than ever before.
- Promoting Residential Efficiency. Technology offers the possibility of a “zero-energy” home. The average American home loses between 10 and 50 percent of its energy through inadequate insulation and inefficient lights and appliances. President Bush is committed to supporting research that promotes advances in energy efficiency, and the energy bill offers consumers tax credits for making energy efficiency improvements in their homes.
- Increasing The Efficiency Of Appliances And Commercial Products. The energy bill sets new minimum energy efficiency standards for a range of consumer and commercial products, including heaters, refrigerators, and lighting units. It also encourages the sale and production of energy efficient products, which increases the supply of available energy, helping families meet their bottom lines. Tax credits are available for highly efficient central air conditioners, heat pumps, and water heaters, as well as to upgrade thermostats, install exterior windows, and stop energy waste.
- Reducing Federal Government Energy Usage. The Federal government is the largest user of energy, and the energy bill calls on Federal agencies to lead by example and improve their energy efficiency. The energy bill reauthorizes the Energy Savings Performance Contract program, which allows private contractors to help Federal agencies improve the energy efficiency of their facilities. The bill also sets aggressive new goals for Federal energy efficiency and requires agencies to purchase Energy Star products.
- Modernizing Domestic Energy Infrastructure. The energy bill will help modernize our aging energy infrastructure to help reduce the risk of large-scale blackouts and minimize transmission bottlenecks. This will be accomplished by repealing outdated rules that discourage investment in new infrastructure, offering tax incentives for new transmission construction, and by encouraging the development of new technologies, such as superconducting power lines, to make the grid more efficient.
- Diversifying The Nation’s Energy Supply With Renewable Sources. The energy bill will promote the use of renewable energy sources with tax credits for wind, solar, and biomass energy, including the first-ever tax credit for residential solar energy systems. The bill also expands research into developing hydrogen technologies and establishes a flexible, national Renewable Fuels Standard to encourage greater use of renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel.
- Supporting A New Generation Of Energy-Efficient Vehicles. In his FY 2006 Budget, President Bush called for new consumer tax credits for energy-efficient hybrid, clean-diesel, and fuel-cell vehicles. The energy bill will provide up to $3,400 per vehicle in tax credits to consumers for purchase of these cars, based on their fuel savings potential. Some of these cars can travel twice as far as conventional vehicles on one gallon of fuel, reducing U.S. dependence on foreign energy sources while producing lower emissions.
Posted Tuesday, February 20, 2007.