WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), a cosponsor of the bipartisan Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act, also known as “Shaheen-Portman,” filed three amendments to the bill as debate on the legislation accelerated on Thursday. The amendments would seek to incorporate three bills introduced earlier this year by Senator Coons — the Weatherization Enhancement, and Local Energy Efficiency Investment and Accountability Act, Energy Savings through Public-Private Partnerships Act, and Master Limited Partnerships Parity Act — into the energy efficiency legislation.
“Promoting the use of energy-efficient technologies is a common-sense way to reduce our energy costs and increase our nation’s energy security,” Senator Coons said. “The Shaheen-Portman bill will encourage the federal government, communities, and industries across our nation to make energy efficiency upgrades that result in substantial cost savings. The amendments I have introduced will complement and enhance this goal by reauthorizing vital energy programs, encouraging valuable energy savings contracts, and helping renewable and energy efficiency projects access capital at a lower cost. I hope my colleagues in the Senate will join me in supporting this strong, bipartisan legislation.”
Senator Coons has been a leading advocate for the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act, which is designed to spur the use of energy-efficient technologies in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors of the economy. The bill will strengthen building energy codes for homes and commercial real estate, incentivize the use of more efficient motors and transformers, and introduce energy-saving guidelines for the federal government, among other provisions.
The Weatherization Enhancement, and Local Energy Efficiency Investment and Accountability Act, introduced by Senator Coons, Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.) in June, would strengthen and reauthorize the heart of the federal government’s energy efficiency strategy — the Weatherization Assistance Program — as well as the vital work of the State Energy Program. For nearly four decades, these programs have assisted millions of low-income families with cost-saving energy efficiency upgrades and encouraged state and local initiatives that increase energy efficiency and develop alternative energy sources. The bill would reauthorize both programs for five more years.
The Energy Savings through Public-Private Partnerships Act, introduced in July, would encourage the use of Energy Savings Performance Contracts and Utility Energy Savings Contracts — valuable tools that allow the government to upgrade aging facilities and reduce energy costs at no cost to taxpayers. Energy savings contracts utilize private sector investment to install new energy efficient equipment in federal facilities. The bill would extend the federal government’s performance contracting goal over the next five years and promote increased adoption of energy and water conservation measures in federal facilities.
The bipartisan Master Limited Partnerships Parity Act, introduced by Senator Coons and Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) in April, would move the United States toward an all-of-the-above energy strategy by allowing renewable energy sources, energy storage, and energy efficiency technologies to take advantage of the same tax-advantaged business structure currently utilized by fossil fuel projects.
Senator Coons is also a cosponsor of an amendment offered by Senator Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) that would authorize the nation’s first Quadrennial Energy Review, a government-wide review of the nation’s energy needs and capabilities. The review would provide a strategic roadmap to drive innovation in domestic energy sources, strengthening domestic competitiveness and decreasing U.S. dependence on foreign oil.
The Senate is expected to vote on the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act next week.