Sen. Sherrod Brown touts energy bill
Brad Dicken | The Chronicle-Telegram
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown has introduced a bill that would see the federal government invest $36 billion over the next five years on encouraging alternative energy around the nation.
The key piece of the bill that could impact Lorain County are grant and other programs that will encourage manufacturing of equipment used in green technology, such as wind and solar power.
“It will help our nation break free of foreign oil and grow our economy with green energy,” said Brown, D-Avon, during a conference call with reporters Wednesday to announce the bill.
Brown said he has participated in about 90 roundtables on alternative energy around Ohio in recent months and believes that the new technology will allow the Buckeye State to reinvent itself as a hub of green manufacturing.
The grant programs would be aimed at communities facing high unemployment and job losses and could help revitalize the “flagging economy,” Brown said.
It would also have provisions for incentives designed to encourage energy companies to make the switch from older power sources, such as coal burning, to the new technology.
“The government can’t do it all, but it can help those companies do the right things,” Brown said.
Lorain County Commissioner Ted Kalo, who has pushed bringing green companies to the county, said he hasn’t seen the details of Brown’s proposed bill yet, but he’s encouraged by what he’s heard.
“That’s the direction the state of Ohio and Lorain County are heading to reinvent our manufacturing,” he said.
The county Port Authority approved a $3.8 million loan last month that helped convince a geothermal energy startup company — Global Green Technologies and Solutions — to locate its world headquarters in Lorain.
Kalo has said he also is working to convince another company that deals with green technology to do business in the county.
Brown said his bill would create a seven-person board to oversee how the money is dispersed around the country. The board would be composed of business leaders, labor representatives and environmental experts, but not politicians, Brown said.
The bill would provide
$1 billion for programs the first year, $5 billion the second year and $10 billion per year over the next three years, Brown said.
How the government will come up with the money hasn’t been decided, Brown said, but he’d like to see federal subsidies and tax breaks for oil companies — which are enjoying record profits as gas prices soar — changed to fund the program.
Brown said it’s vital for the United State to push green energy because other nations, including China and Germany, are already cornering the market on some of the technologies.
“While we’re debating whether to punch holes in the ground, the rest of the world is passing us by,” he said.
Contact Brad Dicken at 329-7147 or bdicken@chroniclet.com.
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Filed by Brad Dicken | The Chronicle-Telegram May 1st, 2008 in Local and State. Popularity: 2% |
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