News

May 13, 2014 – Washington, DC – Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) has issued the following statement on recent events that have taken place in the Senate concerning the Shaheen-Portman Energy Efficiency Bill. 

New Report Details Benefits of Advanced Energy Technologies for Buildings and Industry, Electricity Generation, Electricity Delivery and Grid Management

“Today, the Senate Finance Committee took a critical step toward modernizing America’s energy infrastructure by approving a tax extenders package that will support continued investment in advanced energy technologies,” said Todd Keller, vice president for federal policy at Advanced Energy Economy, a national business association. “Business needs stability in tax treatment, and the expiration of vital advanced energy tax credits at the end of last year was disruptive to the marketplace. This legislation goes a long way toward providing the certainty needed to drive the innovation and deployment of advanced energy technologies and services that make our nation’s energy more secure, clean and affordable.

“Chairman Camp’s proposal is an important, if provocative, contribution to the tax reform discussion,” said Malcolm Woolf, senior vice president for policy and government affairs at Advanced Energy Economy, a national business association. “Unfortunately, zeroing out advanced energy tax credits would impede our progress towards building a high performing energy system that is essential to America’s long term economic prosperity.”

Washington, D.C. – At $1.1 trillion in estimated global revenue, advanced energy grew at a rate more than double the global economy last year, according to a market report commissioned by Advanced Energy Economy (AEE). In the United States, the advanced energy market excluding wind energy experienced double-digit growth the last two years – outpacing the economy by a factor of four – while wind energy saw a boom and bust in that two-year period due to inconsistent federal policy.

“We at Advanced Energy Economy extend our congratulations to Senator Ron Wyden as he becomes chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance,” said Malcolm Woolf, Senior Vice President of Policy and Government Affairs for AEE. “Senator Wyden has been a forward-looking thinker and an active supporter of advanced energy solutions throughout his career. We look forward to working with him and the committee in moving toward an energy tax structure that takes a targeted, technology-neutral approach to provide stability and certainty for the business community for the long term, and restores recently expired advanced energy tax credits for business stability and certainty in the short term.

“President Obama is the first president in a half-century able to tout America’s emerging energy independence. That didn’t happen by accident, but by the efforts of innovators combined with smart policies. Thanks to these efforts, the U.S. controls its own energy destiny for the first time in a generation. The danger now is not dependency. It is complacency. As we emerge from this long recession, we need to continue to make progress toward energy systems that are better and smarter. The established businesses and committed entrepreneurs who are making that happen need fair treatment in the tax code, funding for R&D and support for deployment and adoption of the best technologies. If we continue on this path, someday soon a future president just may announce at a State of the Union that the United States is the world’s biggest exporter of energy. That is a goal worth pursuing.” -- Graham Richard, CEO of Advanced Energy Economy.

“U.S. advanced energy businesses need tax certainty for their investments in order to maintain their position in a more than $1 trillion global industry,” said Graham Richard, CEO of Advanced Energy Economy. “On behalf of more than 60 signers of this letter, we call on Congress to extend retroactively the recently expired advanced energy tax credits for wind energy, biofuel, and energy efficiency investments. By doing so, Congress will spur continued growth in an industry that is helping to make our energy system more secure, clean, and affordable."

- Steve Chadima, SVP Communications & Director of California Initiatives at Advanced Energy Economy

"AEE commends the Governor for proposing a budget that is fiscally prudent and reinforces California's leadership in advanced energy. Advanced energy is critical to California's future and Governor Brown continues to place a priority on energy investments with a high potential for economic development and job growth. Returning borrowed cap and trade funds for use towards advanced energy programs further reinforces our mutual belief that California's efforts to realize its 2020 emissions goals will accelerate economic development in the state. California's advanced energy industry will continue to work with all elected officials to deliver on this promise."