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Green New Deal Could Cost Consumers $244 Billion in Appliance Replacements

Installing a Washer and Dryer

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following news that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., plans to bring the proposed Green New Deal up for a Senate vote, David Holt, President of Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), the leading consumer energy advocate, released the below statement:

“The Green New Deal is not a practical solution for American consumers. Many common household appliances including furnaces, water heaters, stoves, and dryers are powered by abundant, affordable energy resources including natural gas, which the proposal aims to eliminate. Just considering the collective costs of replacing these daily household devices would cost American families nearly $244 billion!”

Holt added: “The costs to replace these appliances required by the Green New Deal would be an insurmountable burden for the 39.7 million Americans living at or below the poverty line and the 61 percent of Americans that have less than $1,000 in their savings account. This segment of the population lacks the financial resources to replace the most essential appliances the Green New Deal would require. American consumers need better, more practical energy solutions than this proposal offers.

“The Green New Deal should be vigorously opposed by any political leader who has even a cursory understanding of the U.S. economy and sensible policies that would be designed to improve our environment and meet our growing energy needs.”

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About Consumer Energy Alliance
Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) is the leading consumer advocate for energy, bringing together families, farmers, small businesses, distributors, producers and manufacturers to support America’s environmentally sustainable energy future. With more than 550,000 members nationwide, our mission is to help ensure stable prices and energy security for households and businesses across the country. CEA works daily to encourage people across the nation to seek sensible, realistic and environmentally responsible solutions to meeting our energy needs.

Contact:
Emily Haggstrom
P: 720-582-0242
ehaggstrom@consumerenergyalliance.org

Consumer Group Applauds Decision to Re-Introduce Bill that Would Set Rates for Residential Solar

Residential Solar Installation

Louisville, KY – Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), the leading consumer energy advocate, released the following statement after the introduction of Senate Bill 100, which, similar to past legislation, would put the onus on the state’s independent Public Utility Commission to set rates for rooftop solar owners and the power they put back onto the grid.

“As the voice of the energy consumer, CEA has long advocated for pro-solar, pro-grid and pro-consumer policies that will ensure the long-term viability and growth of solar deployment while ensuring our electric systems and costs are properly maintained,” said Brydon Ross, CEA’s Vice President for State Affairs.

“We are pleased to see that Senator Brandon Smith has introduced SB 100, which takes some common-sense steps to update Kentucky’s private solar incentives and provides protections for existing solar customers by grandfathering them in for 25 years. The bill would also expand the size of eligible systems to participate in the program by 50 percent.

Ross added, “Kentucky’s solar incentives were first put in place 15 years ago. Since then, installation costs across the country for solar have fallen by more than 70 percent and the use of distributed solar systems has increased thanks to dramatic technology advances. Having the Public Service Commission, a non-partisan regulator, examine how incentives for future customers should be structured is a smart way to ensure that our programs can keep pace with the dynamic changes in the market so we can continue to help grow solar across the entire Commonwealth.”

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About Consumer Energy Alliance
Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) is the leading consumer advocate for energy, bringing together families, farmers, small businesses, distributors, producers and manufacturers to support America’s environmentally sustainable energy future. With more than 550,000 members nationwide, our mission is to help ensure stable prices and energy security for households and businesses across the country. CEA works daily to encourage people across the nation to seek sensible, realistic and environmentally responsible solutions to meeting our energy needs.

Contact:
Emily Haggstrom
P: 720-582-0242
ehaggstrom@consumerenergyalliance.org

The Sunshine State and Solar

The Sunshine State, as its name suggests, sees over 120 sunny days a year. Florida’s ideal weather allows the 116 million visitors to enjoy the pristine beaches and world-renowned amusement parks – adding approximately $51 billion to the state’s economy. Florida is no stranger to using sunshine to generate energy, with over 2,000 MW of solar already installed and a predicted 5,400 MW more over the next five years. Though you might think that Florida would lead in solar energy, the state ranks 8th in the nation in terms of installed capacity following behind California, Arizona, Texas, and Nevada.

With solar installation and production comes jobs, and lots of them – engineers, physicists, power plant operators, but they still need more to ensure all that sunshine can be made into electricity. However, did you know that 93% of solar installation companies, and 79% of overall solar companies, do not require a bachelor’s degree for new hires? This is great news for people who don’t want to go into formal education or like to work with their hands. However, there are also other opportunities that people are already doing, from project development teams to sales and distribution, over 8,500 Floridians are employed thanks to the solar industry with some career paths offering heftier paychecks at over $75,000 a year.

This is great for an industry that has grown 13% year-over-year according to Solar Energy Industry Association. For those that can afford rooftop solar, it is a great way to save money on energy and generate electricity right at home. Even as solar grows, rooftop solar is not the driving force behind that growth – much of that is in large-scale solar development, which helps bring solar energy and its benefits to everyone, regardless if they can afford it or not. Currently, there are 152 large-scale solar projects under construction and another 3,665 planned. The same organizations that are producing these large-scale solar also hired at about twice the average rate of all solar firms according to data from The Solar Foundation.

In 2018 alone, large-scale solar accounted for approximately 700 MW of capacity – enough to power roughly 76,000 Florida homes. That’s in addition to the 250,000 homes that are already benefiting from solar on their roof. That’s a lot of solar energy for people to use and be a part of adding solar to the state’s energy mix.

Companies like Walt Disney World and Florida Power and Light are among the many taking part in these large-scale projects across the state with over 1.5 million solar panels between the two headed into 2019. Walt Disney World predicts that by using half a million panels, they will be able to generate enough energy to power two of the four Disney theme parks – with the Magic Kingdom alone seeing over 20 million visitors a year!

As these large scale solar projects continue to expand across the state, solar energy will truly be brought to both Floridians and tourists alike – even those who could not afford solar energy on their own.

It’s easy to see how solar energy production has soared in Florida with 580 companies invested in the future of solar and the future of Florida households. Thanks to the widespread initiative taken by companies across the state, consumers ­– especially the 2.9 million Floridians, or 14%, living at or below the poverty line – have the opportunity to be a part of a cleaner energy future.

Consumer Group Expresses Disappointment after Gov. Walz Refiles the Commerce Department Lawsuit against the Line 3 Pipeline Project

Winter Driving

Minneapolis, MN – Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), the leading consumer energy advocate, expressed its disappointment following the news that Governor Walz had refiled the Minnesota Department of Commerce’s Lawsuit against Enbridge’s proposed, and much-needed replacement, of the Line 3 pipeline. Chris Ventura, CEA’s Midwest Executive Director made the following statement:

“On behalf of families and businesses all across the Upper Midwest, CEA is extremely disappointed with today’s decision by the Governor to continue using the Minnesota Department of Commerce to advocate against consumers and against strengthening the state’s economic future. The Minnesota Public Utility Commission held an exhaustive public comment with over 20 public meetings and ultimately found the project to be in the public’s interest after reviewing the process, the law, and the science.”

“It’s time to bring Minnesotans together – putting misguided, anti-energy, anti-growth politics aside – and finally letting this piece of our critical infrastructure be replaced. Line 3 will not only be safer for the environment, but it will continue to ensure Minnesota families, farmers, and households have the vital energy they need to power their lives.”

“This move by the Governor is the latest in a series of delays, and stall tactics, that have emerged over the last year. No stone has been left unturned here. Every regulatory, safety and policy issue pertaining to the project has been covered. Families and businesses need access to affordable reliable energy, and with no solutions to cover the energy that the Line 3 pipeline will bring in, it is ultimately the consumers of Minnesota that will pay the price.”

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About Consumer Energy Alliance
Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) is the leading consumer advocate for energy, bringing together families, farmers, small businesses, distributors, producers and manufacturers to support America’s environmentally sustainable energy future. With more than 550,000 members nationwide, our mission is to help ensure stable prices and energy security for households and businesses across the country. CEA works daily to encourage people across the nation to seek sensible, realistic and environmentally responsible solutions to meeting our energy needs.

Contact:
Emily Haggstrom
P: 720-582-0242
ehaggstrom@consumerenergyalliance.org

 

Homegrown Energy

Offshore oil rig at sunset

CEA’s Kevin Doyle talks about the importance of offshore energy exploration and how our environmental regulations, together with advances in technology, allow our country to be the world leader in producing energy in the safest and most environmentally sustainable manner.

Innovation in energy technology, better-quality techniques and an array of state of federal regulations that remain the safest globally ensures we can do just that and protect the environment, plus reduce imports from foreign, and often hostile, countries with far less stringent rules and regulations.

That’s not just my opinion but also former President Barack Obama’s, who once said: “I would rather us —with all the safeguards and standards that we have — be producing our oil and gas, rather than importing it, which is bad for our people, but is also potentially purchased from places that have much lower environmental standards than we do.”

Read more – The Daily Press

Green New Deal Would Cost American Consumers Almost $244 Billion – in JUST Four Appliances

Mother preparing healthy food lunch boxes for children in kitchen

The “Green New Deal” is not such a good deal for American energy consumers. Designed to completely replace America’s use of abundant and affordable energy sources such as natural gas, the resolution’s goal is to make the country entirely dependent upon renewable energy.   The Green New Deal is not a practical solution for American consumers, as many common household appliances, such as furnaces, water heaters, stoves, and dryers, are powered by natural gas and would have to be replaced at the expense of hardworking families across the country.

Most American households rely on natural gas for cooking, cleaning, or heating their homes.  About 59.5 million households rely upon natural gas for heat – crucial during the recent polar vortex.((https://www.eia.gov/consumption/residential/data/2015/hc/php/hc1.1.php))  On average, a new electric furnace and installation costs $2,615 for a total of more than $155.5 billion nationwide.((https://www.homeadvisor.com/cost/heating-and-cooling/install-a-furnace/))

The Green New Deal would also require replacing all home water heaters for 56.3 million American households.((https://www.eia.gov/consumption/residential/data/2015/hc/php/hc1.1.php))  For households to comply, they would have to shell out an additional $889((https://www.homeadvisor.com/cost/plumbing/install-a-water-heater/)) (more than $50 billion across the U.S.).   Furthermore, 39 million households would have to replace their natural gas cooking range. Even if they chose a low-end electric range, the additional expense would be $678 (for a total cost of more than $26.4 billion nationwide).((https://www.homewyse.com/costs/cost_of_electric_ovens.html))  Then add insult to injury and consider the 17.9 million new electric clothes dryers that would need to replace gas dryers at an average installed cost of $665 (or $ 11.9 billion nationwide).((https://www.eia.gov/consumption/residential/data/2015/hc/php/hc3.1.php))((https://www.homewyse.com/services/cost_to_replace_electric_dryer.html))

The total for replacement of these four common household appliances under the Green New Deal is almost $244 billion.((Total cost of replacing natural gas furnaces ($155.5 million), water heaters ($50 billion), cooking ranges ($26.4 billion) and clothes dryers ($11.9 billion) nationwide.))

The replacement costs, sadly, are a greater burden for the 39.7 million Americans living at or below the poverty line.((https://talkpoverty.org/poverty/))  Moreover, this is not accounting for most Americans who lack the financial resources to replace even the most essential appliances the Green New Deal would like to change out. That is because a recent survey found that 61 percent of Americans have less than $1,000 in their savings account.((https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/18/few-americans-have-enough-savings-to-cover-a-1000-emergency.html)) American consumers need practical energy solutions that come from our nation’s affordable energy resources. The Green New Deal does not offer solutions for American energy consumers.

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New US Gas Pipeline Capacity Installed Rose 35% in 2018: FERC Report

Pipeline welder

As investments in new and modernized energy infrastructure are being completed, new supplies of natural gas are reaching areas that are underserved and increasing reliability for families and businesses.

Basis impacts were noticeable, as three of those projects helped alleviate constraints at regional supply hubs and allowed for more market flexibility.

Read more – S&P Global

Minnesota Tribe Asks: Can Wild Rice Have Its Own Legal Rights?

Minneapolis, Minnesota from Stone Arch Bridge

CEA Midwest Executive Director was interviewed on techniques used by extreme activist groups that try to abuse the U.S. legal system in their attempts to ban energy development and transmission.

“They’re utilizing a legal theory that is based more on fundraising practices than the actual law itself,” he said, “It’s an abuse of the law.”

Read more – Star Tribune

CEA Applauds Court Decision, Warns Stalling Pipeline Projects Hurts Consumers

Man putting gas in car

Pittsburgh, PA – Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), the leading advocate on energy and its effects on consumers, applauded the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals for its decision ordering the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to “clarify its reasoning for denying a Clean Water Act certification” for the Northern Access Pipeline project.

Mike Butler, CEA’s Mid-Atlantic Executive Director, made the following statement:

“We applaud the Second Circuit’s decision today. For far too long some state agencies have been unnecessarily curtailing much-needed pipeline projects for reasons unrelated to a project’s water quality permit,” Butler said. “It’s time that officials in New York and elsewhere end the blockade on projects like Northern Access and create clear, transparent regulatory pathways that allow more affordable supplies of natural gas to reach families and small businesses. Too many of us are paying too much for energy, with New Yorkers playing some of the highest energy costs in the country.

“It’s time officials and regulators stop delaying critical projects that have gone through multiple layers of rigorous regulatory analysis. These postponements hurt workers, their families, businesses and ultimately. all of us who are being denied access to reliable, affordable energy. It is time we recognize that delivering the energy we need to manage our daily lives is mandatory and that pipelines are by far the safest way to do that.”

“We’re glad to see the 2nd Court respond to the validity of the DEC’s earlier denial and move us a step closer to allowing New Yorkers to get the energy they so desperately need.”

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About Consumer Energy Alliance
Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) is the leading consumer advocate for energy, bringing together families, farmers, small businesses, distributors, producers and manufacturers to support America’s environmentally sustainable energy future. With more than 550,000 members nationwide, our mission is to help ensure stable prices and energy security for households and businesses across the country. CEA works daily to encourage people across the nation to seek sensible, realistic and environmentally responsible solutions to meeting our energy needs.

Contact:
Emily Haggstrom
P: 720-582-0242
ehaggstrom@consumerenergyalliance.org

Energy Industry Holds the Key to Area’s Recovery

Pipeline Construction Worker

CEA’s Kaitlin Schmidtke reviews how the growth in jobs tied to the energy industry is helping to lower unemployment and create new opportunities for scores of Louisiana.

Louisiana reportedly has the nation’s fifth-highest unemployment rate. Countless businesses and working families need tax relief and job-creating policies. And several rural communities need greater financial assistance as more residents look elsewhere for jobs and economic opportunity.

Read more – Houma Today
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