Over 140 Bipartisan Clean Energy Workers and Entrepreneurs Condemn House “Energy Week” Votes Against Job-Creating Inflation Reduction Act

Signers Joined a Counter Resolution from Clean Energy for America, Championing the Historic Jobs and Savings from the Clean Energy Policies of the Biden Administration.

(Washington, D.C.) — Today, 147 bipartisan clean energy professionals from 36 states and the District of Columbia condemned House Republicans’ “Energy Week,” the series of legislative attacks on America’s clean energy workers, consumers and communities. The signers — which included entrepreneurs, workers, executives as well as self-identified Republicans — added their name to a counter resolution supporting clean energy. 

The pro-clean energy resolution, sponsored by Clean Energy for America, championed “U.S. clean energy and the money-saving, pollution-cutting, job-creating, pro-American energy policies of the Biden administration.”  It also “denounce[d] the irrational and harmful attempts by congressional partisans to defund Federal investments in clean energy, jobs, savings, and manufacturing that are uplifting their local economies.” (The full text of the counter resolution is copied below.)

“America’s workers made their voices heard today. They don’t want or need more giveaways to oil and gas. They want affordable and reliable clean energy. They need good-paying jobs and lower energy bills. They deserve a Congress that listens. It’s past time for House Republicans to start listening,” said Andrew Reagan, executive director of Clean Energy for America.

Several business leaders and signers echoed that sentiment with the following quotes.

• Kevin Doffing, Veterans Advanced Energy Project, of Texas: “As an Operation Iraqi Freedom combat veteran working in the clean energy industry, I’ve seen firsthand how growing America’s energy independence promotes our national security. Instead of attacking clean energy or renewables, we need an all-energy approach. My time in Iraq taught me what energy security and energy poverty mean. We can’t be free while only tied to energy that is controlled by countries like Iran or Russia. The threat of energy poverty is real and something I’ve felt with the increasing impact of volatile weather events in an under-invested grid. We need to unshackle ourselves from the whims of these petrostates and build a local clean energy economy alongside our existing energy infrastructure. As a lifelong Republican voter, I encourage the House GOP to focus on productive ways to grow America’s clean energy dominance. This is something we can lead globally for the next century as we have in oil & gas for the last 100 years. The energy transition is not a partisan issue. This will provide not only energy security but also jobs and economic development in our rural communities. It is a crucial pathway toward a sustainable future and energy security that benefits all Americans. I urge all policymakers on both sides of the aisle to prioritize bipartisan cooperation and endorse initiatives that foster energy independence and innovation.”

• Dave Belote, chief executive officer of DARE Strategies, of Florida: “As an Air Force veteran working in the clean energy industry, I’ve seen firsthand how growing America’s energy independence can provide true energy security. I urge the House GOP to redirect their efforts toward constructive measures further enhancing America's clean energy dominance. Instead of impeding progress in this vital sector, policymakers should prioritize initiatives like the Inflation Reduction Act that support research, development, and deployment of clean energy technologies. By investing in clean energy innovation and infrastructure, we can bolster our energy security and stimulate economic growth, create jobs, and mitigate the impacts of climate change.”

• Richard Harkrader, founder of Carolina Solar Energy, of North Carolina: “In my four decades in the clean energy industry, I've witnessed the transformative power of renewable energy firsthand. Now is no time to go backward, to walk away from American clean energy jobs and savings in clean energy achieved because of the Biden administration’s historic Affordable Clean Energy Plan, IRA. Renewable energy is faster, cheaper and the only indigenous energy NC has. I encourage the House of Representatives to prioritize real energy independence and innovation from technologies like solar power.” 

The full text of the pro-clean energy resolution is available below. It’s also available online with the full list of signers here.

TEXT OF PRO CLEAN-ENERGY RESOLUTION

Celebrating the money-saving, pollution-cutting, job-creating, pro-American energy policies of the Biden administration, and for other purposes.

Whereas President Biden’s clean energy plan is expected to cut energy costs by as much as 9% and lower gas prices by as much as 13% by 2030.

Whereas a majority of U.S. voters – including young voters, Independents, Latino, and Black voters – want the U.S. to speed up the transition to clean and renewable energy.

Whereas the Inflation Reduction Act has already spurred over 210,000 jobs across 45 states and Puerto Rico;

Whereas President Biden’s Affordable Clean Energy Plan provided $367 billion in investments to accelerate the electrification of our transportation, expand clean energy deployment in wind, solar, and geothermal, and create jobs in nearly every community across America.

Whereas President Joe Biden and his administration have proposed and finalized standards and protections that reduce monthly bills for domestic consumers, boost domestic production of clean energy that lowers costs and pollution, and increase our energy independence;

Whereas the Inflation Reduction Act will help households save over $1,000 a year on energy costs;

Whereas 2023 was the warmest year on record, as the country suffered wildfires in Hawaii that killed nearly 100 people and heat waves in Arizona that caused third-degree burns from the sidewalks.

Whereas about 50% of the jobs announced from the investments linked to the IRA and the CHIPS Act are expected to be in red states, versus 17% for blue states, according to Fitch Ratings analysis CNN.

Whereas congressional Republicans have tried to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act over 30 times in the 118th Congress;

Whereas the domestic production of fossil fuels does not prevent the fuels’ prices from being manipulated globally, but instead increases the United States dependence on foreign autocracies;

Whereas former President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he wants the Inflation Reduction Act to be reversed along with the clean energy job boom that’s already led to the creation of hundreds of thousands of new American jobs;

Whereas former president Donald Trump has continued to deny the reality of human-caused global warming and wants to risk democracy to increase America’s dependence on oil and gas, saying this winter, “I want to be a dictator for one day. You know why I wanted to be a dictator? Because I want a wall, and I want to drill, drill, drill”;

Whereas the oil and gas giants earned a record $400 billion in profits while enriching wealthy shareholders with $114 billion on stock buybacks and $100 billion on dividends;

Whereas President Biden’s clean cars standards are expected to save families over $1,000 at the pump, and tax credits make EVs more affordable by reducing the sticker price by up to $7,500, saving you and your family an average of $1,700 a year on fuel and maintenance costs:

Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That these businesses and business leaders of America —

(1) celebrate the money-saving, cost-lowering, job-creating -American energy policies of the Biden administration;

(2) denounce the irrational and harmful attempts by congressional partisans to defund Federal investments in clean energy, jobs, savings, and manufacturing that are uplifting their local economies; 

(3) encourage the domestic production of reliable, affordable, clean energy generation sources that cut pollution, create local jobs, end our dependence on oil and gasses priced on the global market, and decarbonize our economy.

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Clean Energy for America: CE4A is the voice for the clean energy workforce, a broad coalition of clean energy stakeholders, who overwhelmingly support ambitious action on climate to grow our economy and create jobs. Clean Energy for America is of, for, and by the rapidly emerging clean energy workforce. Led by some of the most influential leaders across the industry, CE4A has operations across the country, mobilizing the clean energy industry for grassroots engagement – carrying forward the momentum and demand for a clean energy economy.