Americans understand that some debates in Washington are often marked by major philosophical and political differences. And we’ve all watched disagreement amongst the major parties stall controversial issues like financial and healthcare reform and even shut down our government. However, a more startling byproduct is the way partisanship is taking its toll on issues that should be a win-win for everyone.
I think President Obama said it best in his recent State of the Union address when he called for 2014 to be the year of action – a year of working better together to make real progress. This is a call to Congress – Democrats, Republicans and Independents alike – to get on the same page for the betterment of our country. And they need to start with the issues that can bridge the divide – that can serve the country, show Americans that Washington can work in a bipartisan fashion, and build trust and faith among our elected leaders.
Energy efficiency is one such issue.
Both sides of the aisle have long agreed on being more efficient in our energy use. And sound bipartisan energy management policy has been within the grasp of Congress on a few occasions. However, what starts as a pure energy efficiency bill often gets weighed down by other issues that tend to be more controversial such as climate change, cap and trade, Keystone XL pipeline, and, astonishingly, most recently, the Affordable Care Act. In 2014, Congress must pass pure energy efficiency legislation free of issues that clog and ultimately defeat the legislation.
Energy efficiency legislation is proven to create jobs, save money and reduce energy usage. The U.S. currently ranks ninth in energy efficiency among the world’s 12th largest economies. This is not because we don’t have the tools in place to intelligently curb our consumption. It’s government’s role to put the policy in place to take advantage of these tools on a wide-scale.
Proven energy efficiency ideas like energy savings performance contracts (ESPCs) are one of the easiest ways to achieve our goals. An ESPC is a partnership between a federal agency and an energy service company (ESCO). The ESCO conducts an energy audit of a federal facility and identifies improvements to save energy. The ESCO then arranges the necessary private sector funding to complete the project and make the building more energy efficient. The ESCO guarantees that the improvements will generate energy cost savings over the term of the contract. It is a proven free market approach to address energy efficiency matters and a typical $10 million ESPC creates about 100 jobs.
As the country faces more than a $17 trillion debt, Congress is looking for ways to slow or reduce federal spending and make better use of taxpayer dollars. ESPCs are a perfect example of an initiative that allows federal agencies to complete energy-savings projects without up-front capital costs and without congressional appropriations. ESPCs already have bipartisan support in legislation such as The Energy Efficient Government Technology Act, introduced by Representatives Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and Mike Rogers (R-MI). Legislation like this can be passed now.
Time and time again, President Obama has stood in front of the nation and made a commitment to American energy. Congress should make that same commitment. Energy efficiency legislation can pass in both chambers with significant majorities if only given the opportunity to stand on its own; not weighed down by other contentious issues. This is a low-risk opportunity for Congress to show they can put political affiliations aside to bring in new jobs, reduce debt and make a real impact on the environment. Energy efficiency is something we can all stand behind.
Jim Pauley is Senior Vice President, External Relations and Government Affairs at Schneider Electric.
