Advanced Energy Economy Recommends Policy Priorities to 116th Congress

Business group proposes four key priority areas with specific policy actions to ensure all energy resources can compete based on price and performance

WASHINGTON, D.C., Jan. 24, 2019 – Today national business group Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) announced it has released policy recommendations to the 116^th Congress outlining four key priority areas and specific policy actions to help achieve the broad goals of economic growth, cost savings, and a reliable grid. The full document can be downloaded here.

AEE’s four key priorities include: 

• Remove regulatory obstacles for advanced energy, particularly in wholesale markets.
• Support deep electrification of the transportation system.
• Accelerate creation of a 21st century electricity system.
• Increase market access for corporate buyers. 

“Many members of Congress want action on energy policy in the 116^th Congress to ensure economic growth, cost savings and a reliable grid. We believe these recommendations offer a roadmap to pass real change now and achieve the outcomes Americans are asking for, including creating jobs, providing affordable energy options to consumers who need it, and reducing emissions across all communities,” said Dylan Reed, Head of Congressional Affairs, Advanced Energy Economy.

These recommendations consider the following: 

• Economic growth: The $200 billion advanced energy industry is a strong segment of the American economy, supporting more than 3 million jobs across the country. As the industry continues to grow, there are opportunities to reduce market barriers that prevent advanced energy technologies from deploying fully into the economy. 

• Cost savings: Increasingly, advanced energy resources provide opportunities to save consumers billions of dollars while maintaining the reliability of the grid. Costs have fallen so sharply that in some parts of the country investing in new wind and solar energy projects is more cost-effective than continuing operation (i.e., fuel and maintenance costs) of some traditional generating resources such as coal and nuclear plants. A recent utility filing by Northern Indiana Public Service found customers could save $4 billion by replacing its entire coal fleet by 2028 with a portfolio of solar, wind, storage, and demand management resources.
  
  
• Reliability: Advanced energy also improves reliability cost-effectively, and provides resilience during extreme weather events. During the 2014 Polar Vortex, extreme cold caused onsite coal piles to freeze, power plant control equipment to fail, and natural gas pipelines to become constrained. But grid operators were able to turn to demand-side resources and wind energy to keep the lights on during the emergency. 

About Advanced Energy Economy 
Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) is a national association of businesses that are making the energy we use secure, clean, and affordable. Advanced energy encompasses a broad range of products and services that constitute the best available technologies for meeting energy needs today and tomorrow. AEE’s mission is to transform public policy to enable rapid growth of advanced energy businesses. Engaged at the federal level and in more than a dozen states around the country, AEE represents more than 100 companies in the $200 billion U.S. advanced energy industry, which employs more than 3 million U.S. workers. Learn more at www.aee.net and follow the latest industry news @AEEnet.