UNIONS URGE SENATORS TO BACK DOLLARS
FOR DOMESTIC ‘CLEAN ENERGY’ DEVELOPMENT

            WASHINGTON (PAI)--The AFL-CIO, Change To Win and four unions -- along with 200 businesses and 13 national organizations -- are urging the three senators writing a new comprehensive climate change and control bill to include loans and grants for domestic development and manufacturing of ‘clean energy’ products.

            Without such incentives, they add, the U.S. would import 70% of such products as energy-producing windmills, or solar cells, from overseas. That’s what we do now.

            “Ensuring America becomes not only a consumer of clean-energy technologies, but also a leading producer of them will require large-scale investment – akin to the investment that landed the first American on the moon decades ago – as well as strong climate and energy policies,” says the March 17 letter, also signed by the Steelworkers, the Utility Workers, the Laborers and the Electrical Workers (IBEW).

            “To realize the business and job creation benefits of transitioning to a clean energy economy, any comprehensive climate and energy legislation must include investments in domestic clean energy manufacturing and the retooling of existing manufacturers to enter clean energy supply chains,” their letter adds.

            The letter, crafted by the Apollo Alliance, a labor-founded coalition to lobby for massive reconstruction of U.S. manufacturing via green jobs, endorses a loan-and-grant package by Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, leader of a group of industrial-state senators who back the climate change legislation, but want to ensure it creates jobs here.

            “To achieve true energy independence and create good, high-quality manufacturing jobs here in the U.S., climate and energy legislation must ensure American manufacturers take the lead in meeting growing global demand for clean energy products,” the unions’ letter says.

            Brown would establish a 2-year $30 billion Manufacturing Revolving Loan Fund for small and medium sized businesses to retool or establish domestic clean energy product factories. The businesses would have to pay the average state manufacturing wage, plus health benefits, and construction contractors would have to pay prevailing wages. The loans would create 180,000 direct jobs, 522,000 indirect jobs, and as much as $90 billion in revenue, Brown estimates.

            His legislation would also “expand and focus” a present program, Manufacturing Extension Partnerships, onto clean energy manufacturing. That program would get $1.5 billion over five years to reach 10,000 more manufacturers yearly, matched by state and private investment. Combined, the funds could create or retain 500,000 direct manufacturing jobs and 1.45 million indirect jobs, Brown calculated. ###