Arkansas businesses issue statement on clean energy economy as Senate Democrats caucus in Washington D.C.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
DATE: June 17, 2010
Contact: Ken Smith, Arkansas Business Leaders for a Clean Energy Economy
Phone: 501-912-1090
Little Rock, Ark.–As the Senate Democratic Caucus prepares to meet today and discuss the direction and strategy for moving forward on a climate and energy package, business leaders throughout Arkansas sent its economic case for support for building the clean energy economy to Senators Lincoln and Pryor encouraging them to stand behind a comprehensive approach that includes a price on carbon and reminding them that a scaled-down energy only bill will not adequately address our dependence on oil, will not stimulate our economy and will not provide the market stability American businesses need to grow and compete.
Below is a statement from the Arkansas Business Leaders on the importance of passing comprehensive climate and energy legislation.
On behalf of business leaders throughout Arkansas, the Arkansas Business Leaders for a Clean Energy Economy is urging our Senators to stand up for comprehensive climate and energy legislation now. As the disaster unfolds in the Gulf, this is the time for bold action, not a stripped-down energy bill.
We must move quickly and decisively to wean ourselves off dirty fossil fuels for the sake of our economy. Arkansans need and demand comprehensive legislation that puts a price on carbon, unlocks the creativity of the market, and points our state toward a more profitable, more sustainable, and more secure clean-energy future.
The Arkansas council’s business members range from home energy auditing companies to multinational renewal energy corporations, and come from every part of our state. Over the past year, we have:
• Released the energy efficiency study in April by Georgia Institute of Technology and Duke University’s Nicholas Center showing that utility bills in Arkansas could be reduced by $1.2 billion and job growth in energy efficiency in could increase by 8700 jobs.
• Released an economic analysis from three leading universities that shows the House passed version of climate and energy legislation would add up to 25,000 jobs and increase our GDP by $1.2 billion.
• Sponsored economic forums in northwest Arkansas and in the Delta.
• Arranged congressional briefings in Arkansas and in Washington, DC with our Senators staff and several of state’s leading clean energy executives.
Our council is part of a wider movement sweeping the state’s business community. Across Arkansas, 108 businesses are calling for comprehensive climate and energy legislation this year. These businesses employ 16,916 of your fellow Arkansans—and will employ many more if Congress acts now to set our nation on a path to a clean energy future.
Now is the time to act. Between the tragic spill in the Gulf and the mine disaster in West Virginia, Americans have spent months dealing with the consequences of our continued reliance on fossil fuels. There can be no better time to ask Americans to turn away from an increasingly outdated way of powering our economy – it is impossible to ignore the real costs of our fossil-fuel addiction.
Energy-only legislation is not enough. Research shows that a comprehensive climate and clean energy bill will cut US oil imports and greenhouse gas emissions much faster and further, boosting employment higher than an energy-only bill.
A comprehensive climate and energy bill, according to the Congressional Budget Office, will slash our budget deficit by $21 billion by 2019. In comparison, an energy-only bill means more oil imports, more greenhouse gas emissions, and fewer new jobs – and according to Congressional Budget Office estimates available at www.cbo.gov – an energy-only bill would actually increase the budget deficit. To us, the choice is clear.
Here in Arkansas, studies show comprehensive climate and energy legislation could mean up to 25,000 new jobs and increase the state’s GDP an additional $1.2 billion. We need those jobs. In order to create them, business owners need the kind of market certainty that only putting a price on carbon emissions can give.
For the sake of our businesses, our state, and our nation, we are asking Senators Lincoln and Pryor to stand up and support comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation. Now is the moment, and we urge them to act.
For more information visit: www.arkcleaneconomy.biz
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Tags: biomass, Clean Energy, Climate, Energy, Lincoln, Pryor, Senate, solar, wind
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