ASES Policy Recommendations for the 111th Congress
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Shortcut link to this page: www.ases.org/policy2009
The American Solar Energy Society is proud to announce a comprehensive set of federal policy recommendations to generate a total of 37 million jobs in renewable energy and energy efficiency in the U.S. by 2030 - while reducing greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050 (compared to 2006 levels). We assembled some of the nation's leading experts on renewable energy and energy efficiency to develop, scrutinize, and refine these recommendations.These powerful policies will speed the transition to a sustainable energy economy.
The ASES policy recommendations are organized into seven topical areas.
Carbon
Building energy efficiency and renewable energy
Renewable electricity
Transportation
Smart grid and green transmission
Green economy and workforce development
Federal leadership
Summary Recommendations: Establish an upstream cap and auction system to regulate carbon and other greenhouse gases at the points where they first enter the energy economy. System to be economy wide, not just electricity sector. Auction the allocations to avoid a windfall to existing emitters. Use the revenues to support activities that will reduce the costs of attaining targets (ASES recommendation) or as revenue for other policy agendas. Offsetting technologies or practices may receive incentives, but are not permitted to dilute the overall hard cap on carbon emissions. ASES recommends downstream distribution of allowance auctions to states based on progress against each state’s baseline. Additional policy recommendations include actions to reduce agricultural emissions, increase biological carbon sequestration, and reduce tropical deforestation. Click here to read the full policy recommendations >
Impacts: Greenhouse Gas: National emissions reduced 30 percent by 2020, and 50 percent
by 2030. Energy Reduction: Mix of RE, EE, and other measures from low carbon sources. Investment Required: Economy wide incremental annual capital costs of $50-$60 billion.
Cumulative net new investment through 2030 would be $1.1 trillion, or roughly 1.5 percent of the $77 trillion in real investment the U.S. economy is expected to make over this period. Other: Carbon price signal throughout economy. Revenues ~$20-$100 billion/yr.
Timeframe: Start in 2010. Reductions average 3.3 percent annually from 2010 to 2030.
Summary Recommendations: Adopt the Architecture 2030 target of reducing energy consumption in the immediate future in all new buildings and retrofits by 50 percent compared with the regional average, escalating to carbon neutral buildings by 2030. Update the national model building energy codes and require compliance by states as a prerequisite for receiving funding from greenhouse gas carbon auction revenues. Supporting policy recommendations and actions address state and national codes and standards, energy efficiency, building related renewable energy, solar heating and cooling, and financing. Click here to read the full policy recommendations >
Impacts: Greenhouse Gas: Reductions of 460 to 680 MtC/yr by 2030. Energy Reduction: Reduce primary building energy consumption by 11 quads per year ~30 percent from ~38 quads today. Investment Required: Investments of ~$20 billion in building sector.
Timeframe: All new buildings, developments, and major renovations meet a 50 percent energy use reduction compared with regional averages in the immediate future. By 2030, require buildings to be carbon neutral.
Summary Recommendations: Establish national renewable portfolio standard (RPS) reaching at least 50 percent of total electric generation by 2030. Establish federal RPS as a floor, encourage state RPS and/or feed-in tariffs to exceed federal standard. Additional tax, market, R&D, and infrastructure recommendations to support photovoltaics, concentrating solar power, wind, hydropower, geothermal, and biopower, as well as emerging renewable technologies. Click here to read the full policy recommendations >
Impacts: Greenhouse Gas: Total GHG reductions of >500 MtC/yr by 2030. Energy Reduction: NA. Investment Required: ~ $90 billion total annual investment—based on technology specific cost estimates in Tackling Climate Change Report. Renewable Generation: ~2,200 x 106 MWh/yr >= 50 percent of total requirements.
Timeframe: Establish federal RPS by 2010. Potential time profile: 12.5 percent by 2010, 18 percent by 2015, 28 percent by 2020, 39 percent by 2025, and 50 percent by 2030. (Assuming hydropower will stay at its current 7 percent of total electricity.)
Summary Recommendations: Establish national target and supporting policies aimed at ending dependence on foreign oil by 2025. Achieve target through oil savings from efficiency, advanced vehicles, and improved transportation infrastructure, as well as fuel substitution, including the use of clean electricity, conserved natural gas, and sustainable biofuels. A total of twenty-two supporting policies and actions are specified in the report. Click here to read the full policy recommendations >
Impacts: Greenhouse Gas: Reduction of 275 to 550 MtC by 2020 and 630 MtC/yr by 2025. Energy Reduction: 50 percent ~1.7 billion barrels of oil consumption by 2020. Investment Required: $10 billion/year to achieve incremental improvements; up to $1 trillion/year (redirected from business as usual) for energy independence by 2025.
Timeframe: Establish national target of ending oil dependence by 2025 within first 100 days. Begin implementation of phased zero emission vehicle standards in 2010.
Summary Recommendations: Conduct nationally coordinated large-scale transmission studies: address all renewable energy resources; establish renewable enabling transmission action plan; address siting, flexible/firm transmission rates, storage, and ancillary service support. Establish national standards to enable smart grid development, require smart grid plans and investment as prerequisite for state access to carbon auction revenues. Smart Grid includes: demand response, real-time pricing and consumer pricing information, storage, vehicle-to-grid, and distribution automation. Click here to read the full policy recommendations >
Impacts: Investment Required: Total national investment of up to $400 billion. Includes costs for upgrades required for reliability and growth. Enables impacts cited in renewable electricity, building efficiency, and transportation segments cited above.
Timeframe: Complete studies and action plan by mid-2010. Begin to require state level smart grid plans and investments in 2010 to 2012 time horizon. Begin implementation of transmission action plan by 2010.
Summary Recommendations: Establish an aggressive set of federal drivers for the green economy. These include a national renewable energy standard (RES) with solar set aside, tax incentives for the creation of domestic renewable energy and energy efficiency jobs, tax credits for the purchase and installation of energy efficient and renewable energy technologies, and tax credits for the establishment of “green” manufacturing. Creation of loans and grants for re-training and training of green collar employees. Establish a domestic green job corps. Click here to read the full policy recommendations >
Impacts: Creates ready market for green economy products and services. Helps launch green manufacturing. Provides consumer incentive for purchases of green technologies. Helps nurture the workforce to meet the expected demand for these products and services.
Timeframe: First 100 days
Summary Recommendations: Establish the federal government as a leader in the procurement of new renewable energy resources and in improving the energy efficiency of vehicle and buildings to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. Restructure the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to provide greater resources and political support to renewable energy and energy efficiency. Review critical energy related staffing at other federal agencies (such as the Bureau of Land Management) to eliminate permitting bottlenecks. Move to end subsidies for mature energy industries. Provide sufficient budget support for DOE programs. Click here to read the full policy recommendations >
Impacts: Investment Required: Meet 5 percent new renewable procurement targets for 2010–2012 and revise to keep federal government in the lead as federal RPS standards ramp up. Revise federal energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emission reduction targets to reflect 2009 baseline and to capture absolute—as opposed to intensity—reductions. Recommendations include increasing DOE fiscal year 2010 budget by $1.1 billion, providing significant increases in vehicles, buildings, industry, and federal energy management programs.
Timeframe: 30 percent actual reductions in emissions from 2009 levels by the end of fiscal year 2015. Restructure DOE in 2009–2010. Increased DOE budgets for FY 2010.
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