Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today praised the inclusion of competitive grant program to encourage states to invest in energy efficiency and distributed generation, among other energy advancements . The program is similar to the Clean Energy Race to the Top Act Bennet introduced last month.
“I’m glad to see the Administration include our innovative concept in the budget,” Bennet said. “Colorado is leading the way towards a cleaner, more diverse and more efficient energy system. In the absence of a cohesive federal energy policy we ought to do everything we can to encourage clean energy leadership and innovation at the state level.”
Under Bennet’s bill, states, local governments, or public-private partnerships would be eligible to apply for competitive grants to develop and carry out clean energy and carbon reduction measures. Their applications would be evaluated based on a reviewing, scoring and ranking system. Possible measures garnering points include:
- Renewable electricity standards, such as those enacted by Colorado;
- Regional or statewide climate action plans;
- Increased percentage of energy efficient public buildings;
- Participation in a regional greenhouse gas reduction program; and
- Tax incentives for the manufacture or installation of clean energy components or energy efficiency upgrades.