Murkowski Starts with Energy Efficiency in Development of Broad Bill
Energy Panel Hearing Reviews Twenty-Two Legislative Proposals
WASHINGTON, D.C. – April 30, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today began consideration of legislation to improve how Americans use energy as part of her work to get the first broad energy bill signed into law in nearly a decade. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee received testimony on 22 energy efficiency proposals that address a wide range of issues, including building retrofits, federal energy management, appliance efficiency, workforce development, and efficiency grants.
“The energy bills considered today offer the potential to reduce energy usage and costs across our country and throughout our economy. They put forward methods to enhance our leadership on efficiency technologies and to develop a cadre of professionals to work in this field and they also seek to protect consumers, manufacturers, and the environment from unintended consequences of new or revised standards,” Murkowski said. “Energy efficiency is an issue that saves both energy and money. It’s good for the consumers. It’s good for all and it’s a good bipartisan place to start our discussions about federal energy policy.”
Among the witnesses was Fairbanks resident Gene Therriault, deputy director of the Alaska Energy Authority, who testified to importance of listening to states such as Alaska in the crafting of national energy policies.
“The state-federal relationship in energy policy is important and cannot be overlooked. Sometimes the myopia of Washington, D.C. makes it difficult to recognize the value of activities outside of the beltway,” Therriault said. “Energy efficiency is one of America’s greatest energy resources and is essential to our country’s energy independence, economic prosperity, and environmental quality. Being able to take full advantage of energy efficiency requires public-private partnerships and practical policies.”
Murkowski, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, touted the committee’s successful efforts to break the logjam that had long plagued the Senate before 2015, and approve bipartisan energy efficiency legislation, which will be signed into law later today by President Obama.
Thursday’s hearing was the first of four that Murkowski has scheduled through May to consider legislative proposals for the broad energy bill she is assembling. That effort will pull together legislative proposals under four general titles – efficiency, infrastructure, supply, and accountability.
Video of the hearing and a full list of the energy efficiency legislation under consideration are available on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee’s website.
