The POWER Act
Washington, DC,
October 9, 2015
By Congresswoman Dina Titus
When it comes to our nation’s energy policies, we can and we must invest in the kinds of innovative policies and technologies that will conserve our precious energy resources, protect consumers and businesses from volatile energy markets, and preserve our environment for future generations. The POWER Act By Congresswoman Dina Titus When it comes to our nation’s energy policies, we can and we must invest in the kinds of innovative policies and technologies that will conserve our precious energy resources, protect consumers and businesses from volatile energy markets, and preserve our environment for future generations. It is often said that energy efficiency is the first and least-expensive fuel. It is with that in mind that members of Congress from across the country, and on both sides of the aisle, have recognized the need to increase energy efficiency in the industrial sector, which accounts for approximately a quarter of our nation’s energy consumption. Nevada is not often thought of as a major industrial state, but we have facilities large and small, from the resorts and casinos that line the famed Las Vegas Strip to the hospitals, research institutions, and manufacturers that employ thousands from Lake Mead to Lake Tahoe. These facilities can be major consumers of electricity, which results in higher energy costs and increased pollution. Exciting innovation, however, has led to the development of energy systems that help to capture the wasted heat from industrial generators that are common at these large energy users and turn it into a useful source of power. These kinds of systems are commonsense and some Nevada businesses are already making the investment. In 2005, NV Energy invested in a waste-heat recovery system near Goodsprings that generates enough electricity to power 3,000 homes. The Rio in Las Vegas installed a combined-heat and power system that helps to reduce energy costs by $1.5 million. MGM’s Aria CityCenter built a combined-heat and power system that generates 25% of the facilities’ electricity from what otherwise would just be heat emitted into the air. Unfortunately, these leaders in industrial energy-efficiency are the exception and not the rule because these types of systems are at a disadvantage when it comes to our nation’s tax code. That is why I am championing bipartisan, commonsense legislation: the Power Efficiency and Resiliency or POWER Act. We must encourage more businesses and institutions to invest in these kinds of systems to allow them to put money into job creation rather than in energy costs, to protect the environment rather than contributing to global climate change, and to support a clean energy future rather than dependency on outdated and wasteful energy generation. The POWER Act does just that by bringing these energy efficiency technologies to the same level as other clean energy systems, like solar or fuel cell. This Fall, as Congress considers a number of important issues, including energy policy legislation, I will continue to press for smart policies like the POWER Act that make our nation more secure, efficient, and competitive while protecting our environment for generations to come. |