June, 18 2009, 01:06pm EDT
Clean-Energy Investment Provides Economic Boost, More Jobs, and Expanded Opportunities
New Analysis Demonstrates How America Can Create 1.7 Million Jobs and Opportunities for Low-Income Families
WASHINGTON
As clean energy and climate legislation moves through Congress, new
data show that a $150 billion investment in clean energy could create a
net increase of 1.7 million American jobs and significantly lower the
national unemployment rate. According to the analysis, shifting to a
clean-energy economy will help millions of low-income Americans by
creating more accessible job opportunities -- with the potential for
advancement -- and by lowering utility bills and transportation costs.
Two complementary reports - prepared by the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (PERI), Center for American Progress (CAP), Green For All, and the Natural Resources Defense Council
(NRDC) - outline how investment in a clean-energy economy will produce
significant economic and job creation benefits. These include the
generation of roughly three times more jobs than would be generated by
the same investment in the existing fossil fuel infrastructure.
"As
Congressional leaders debate energy and climate legislation in
Washington, we are seeing growing momentum behind a shift to clean
energy and efficiency across America," said Peter Lehner, Executive
Director of NRDC. "It's never been clearer that American ingenuity and
investment in clean energy can be a driving force for economic growth,
energy independence, and environmental protection, so we can increase
economic opportunities while reducing global warming pollution."
"Jobs
are the cornerstone of any economic recovery, and these reports show
that investing in the clean-energy economy will create 1.7 million new
jobs across the country as well as cut America's contribution to global
warming and reduce our dependence on foreign oil," said John Podesta,
President of the Center for American Progress.
The
Economic Benefits of Investing in Clean Energy: How the Economic
Stimulus Program and New Legislation Can Boost U.S. Economic Growth and
Employment from PERI and CAP explains how the combination of the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and the American Clean
Energy and Security Act (ACES) could serve as the foundation for
bringing total clean-energy investments in the United States to
approximately $150 billion per year. This public spending and private
investment would produce a net gain of 1.7 million new jobs.
"These
reports make clear that investment in a clean-energy economy will
create pathways to prosperity for millions of Americans, especially in
low-income communities and communities of color," said Phaedra
Ellis-Lamkins, CEO of Green For All. "Green-collar, career-path jobs
that are accessible to Americans from a broad range of educational
backgrounds are a win for our economy, a win for our environment, and a
win for our workers."
Green Prosperity: How Clean-Energy Policies Can Fight Poverty and Raise Living Standards in the United States
from PERI, NRDC and Green For All shows that shifting from traditional
fossil fuel to clean energy will improve the standard of living for
millions of Americans across all skill and education levels, especially
among lower-income families.
According to the "Green
Prosperity" report, nearly half of the 1.7 million new jobs created by
green investment will be accessible to workers with relatively low
levels of formal education. Of these, nearly 75 percent will have high
potential for advancement. This expansion could drive down the
unemployment rate by more than one percentage point.
In
addition to creating new economic opportunities, this investment will
significantly contribute to improvements in energy efficiency in
buildings and homes, lowering overall energy costs for consumers and
especially benefiting lower-income households. These savings could be
as high as 4 percent of household incomes for some families. Moving to
clean energy would also improve public transportation, especially in
urban areas, which could lead to an average reduction in living costs
of 1 to 4 percent per family.
"Economic Benefits of
Investing in Clean Energy" breaks down the economic growth potential in
all 50 states, while the "Green Prosperity" report focuses on job
creation and the economic impact on lower-income families in 41 regions
across 22 states.
"These studies draw on simple but
robust modeling techniques to estimate the effects on U.S. employment
and living standards of a $150 billion annual clean-energy investment
program," said Robert Pollin, Co-Director, Political Economy Research
Institute at the University of Massachusetts. "By synthesizing these
data sources and modeling approaches in a new way, we are able to
observe in detail how clean-energy investments can deliver substantial
benefits to communities throughout the country, especially for
lower-income working people and their families."
NRDC works to safeguard the earth--its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends. We combine the power of more than three million members and online activists with the expertise of some 700 scientists, lawyers, and policy advocates across the globe to ensure the rights of all people to the air, the water, and the wild.
(212) 727-2700LATEST NEWS
Privacy Defenders Decry 'Spy Draft' in Section 702 Renewal Advanced by Senate
"It's not about who RISAA allows the government to spy on, it's about who RISAA allows the government to force to spy," explained one critic.
Apr 18, 2024
Civil liberties defenders on Thursday decried the U.S. Senate's advancement of the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act, which critics say lawmakers are trying to ram through without protection against warrantless surveillance and with a provision that would effectively make every American a spy whether they like it or not.
Senators voted 67-32 in favor of a cloture motion to begin voting on RISAA, a bill to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which expires on Friday. FISA—a highly controversial law that has been abused hundreds of thousands of times—allows warrantless surveillance of non-U.S. citizens but also often sweeps up Americans' communication data in the process.
In a 273-147 vote last week, House lawmakers passed RISAA, including an amendment critics say dramatically expands the government's unchecked surveillance authority by compelling a wide range of individuals and organizations—including businesses and the media—to cooperate in government spying operations.
This so-called "Make Everyone a Spy" clause would allow the attorney general or director of national intelligence to force electronic communication service providers to "immediately provide... all information, facilities, or assistance" the government deems necessary.
"This bill would basically allow the government to institute a spy draft," Seth Stern, director of advocacy at Freedom of the Press Foundation, warned Thursday. "It will lead to significant distrust between journalists and sources, not to mention everyone else."
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In addition to the "Make Everyone a Spy" provision, civil libertarians have sounded the alarm over the House lawmakers' rejection of an amendment that would have added a warrant requirement to the legislation.
Critics accuse Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and colleagues including Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Mark Warner (D-Va.) of trying to rush a vote on RISAA while disingenuously claiming Section 702's powers will expire with the law on Friday. That's a misleading claim, as a national security court earlier this month approved the government's request to continue a disputed surveillance program even if Section 702 lapses.
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Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.)—who
said earlier this week that the bill would dragoon the American people into becoming "an agent for Big Brother"—on Thursday argued that "this issue demands a debate about meaningful reforms, not a rushed vote to rubber-stamp more warrantless government surveillance powers."
In an attempt to tackle the warrantless surveillance issue, Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) on Thursday proposed a RISAA amendment that would require the government to obtain a warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court before accessing Americans' private communications.
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"If the government wants to spy on the private communications of Americans, they should be required to get approval from a judge—just as our Founders intended," Durbin said in a statement. "Congress has a responsibility to the American people to get this right."
The Biden administration and U.S. intelligence agencies vehemently oppose the Durbin-Cramer amendment. The White House called the measure "a reckless policy choice contrary to the key lessons of 9/11 and not grounded in any constitutional requirement or statute."
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On Wednesday, the House also passed the Fourth Amendment Is Not for Sale Act, which would prohibit the government from buying Americans' information from data brokers if it would otherwise need a warrant to obtain the data, which includes location and internet records. The Senate will now take up FANFSA.
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Since Israel launched what the International Court of Justice has said is a "plausibly" genocidal assault of the Gaza Strip in response to a Hamas-led October attack, the Biden administration has blocked three cease-fire resolutions at the Security Council. Under mounting global pressure, the U.S. finally abstained last month, allowing a cease-fire measure to pass.
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The arrests of dozens of Columbia University and Barnard College students on Thursday "galvanized" other supporters of Palestinian rights on the campuses, as hundreds of students occupied the school's western lawn after New York City police filled at least two buses with protesters who had been detained for setting up an encampment.
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Columbia President Minouche Shafik informed the campus community on Thursday that she had authorized the police to clear the encampment.
As it has been in the past, the school has become a center of anti-war protests—and crackdowns by school officials and the police—since Israel began its bombardment of Gaza in October.
Pro-Palestinian students and alumni have demanded that Columbia divest from companies that profit from Israel's apartheid policies in the occupied Palestinian territories and cancel its dual degree program with Tel Aviv University.
In response to pro-Palestinian demonstrations, Columbia in November suspended the campus chapters of Jewish Voice for Peace and Students for Justice in Palestine—an action that pushed the New York Civil Liberties Union and Palestine Legal to file a lawsuit on behalf of the students last month.
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"Correct," replied Shafik.
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