Alliance Statement On Daniel Simmons’ Confirmation To Lead DOE’s Energy Efficiency Programs Office
WASHINGTON – (RealEstateRama) — The Alliance to Save Energy released the following statement from President Jason Hartke on Thursday after the U.S. Senate on Wednesday evening confirmed Daniel Simmons to be DOE’s Assistant Secretary of Energy heading the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy:
“I welcome Daniel Simmons’ confirmation to be Assistant Secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. I look forward to working with him in his new position.”
“We’ve made enormous progress as a nation on energy efficiency, doubling our energy productivity since 1980. But we still have a lot more work to do. Increasing and accelerating our efforts to save energy should be a top priority. This is a critical job – being in charge of the country’s engine for energy efficiency innovation and overseeing most of our government’s energy efficiency programs. These investments and programs deliver considerable cost savings for homeowners, consumers, and businesses and provide a cost-effective policy tool for reducing pollution.”
“One of the big opportunities for energy cost savings is with appliance and equipment standards, and I appreciate Simmons’ commitment in his hearing to ‘process through that backlog’ of overdue standards. Looking forward, we’d like to see more progress on efficiency standards, timely and predictable R&D spending, and action to ensure critical programs are fully staffed.”
The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, with a budget of approximately $2.1 billion, includes programs to weatherize homes, set appliance and equipment standards, support the adoption of model building energy codes by state and local governments, help manufacturers reduce energy costs and improve competitiveness, upgrade efficiency at federal buildings, and support research, development, and deployment of efficient technologies.
About the Alliance to Save Energy
Founded in 1977, the Alliance to Save Energy is a nonprofit, bipartisan alliance of business, government, environmental and consumer leaders working to expand the economy while using less energy. Our mission is to promote energy productivity worldwide – including through energy efficiency – to achieve a stronger economy, a cleaner environment and greater energy security, affordability and reliability.
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