WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Ray Long, President and CEO of the American Council on Renewable Energy, released the following statement on the budget reconciliation language released by the Senate:

“The Senate Bill released overnight and which they expect to vote on and pass this weekend will undermine three goals that Republicans  have prioritized:  It increases everyone’s electricity costs at a time when prices are already high; it will result in hundreds of thousands of lost jobs and factory closures at a time when energy jobs were on the rise and factories were opening; and, it will play into China’s hands by severely diminishing our ability to compete globally at a time when China is building all energy technologies in order to beat the US. 

“The energy industry has been clear-eyed that changes to the tax credit structure of the IRA were coming. We’ve worked with policy makers on a reasonable phase out that would enable businesses to continue to complete projects that were already in the process of financing and development, that any changes would not strand the billions of dollars of private sector investments underway, and that policy changes would be prospective, not retroactive, consistent with long-held principles of US law that have underpinned good legislative policy that incentivizes, and doesn’t penalize, the private sector investments that have driven our economic growth. The Senate language violates all of these time-tested and honored principles.

“To be clear, the Senate language effectively takes both wind and solar electric supply off the table, at a time when there is $300 billion of investments underway, and this generation is among the only source of electricity that will help to reduce costs and keep the lights on through the early 2030s.   Along with battery storage and natural gas, wind and solar are the only sources of electricity that can be built in time to meet our increasing thirst for more electricity.   Taking these off the table not only increases costs and ensures supply shortages, it also ensures thousands of layoffs and factory closures.  See this 50-state report by ACORE for an understanding of how devastating rolling back these policies will be to our country.

“At the same time, China – our greatest competitor – is doing the opposite. Faced with the same need to increase electricity generation, China outspent the US three-to-one in 2024 and built every technology, including wind and solar. Why – because they know that all of these technologies together are a winning solution to balancing costs, increasing reliability, and beating the US.

“There is still time. Senators should phase out the tax credits by 2028, over four years sooner than they were scheduled to roll off, utilizing the existing start of construction standard that will ensure that projects get built and people are employed. We need workable guidelines for the procurement of equipment, while manufacturing and supply chains continue to shift to the US and our allies. And, in keeping with our tradition of good policy that enables private investment, the changes should not be retroactive and therefore punitive to those who have relied on policies to make investments in our infrastructure and economy.

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ABOUT ACORE

For over 20 years, the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) has been the nation’s leading voice on the issues most essential to clean energy expansion. ACORE unites finance, policy, and technology to accelerate the transition to a clean energy economy. For more information, please visit http://www.acore.org.

Media Contacts:
Stephanie Genco
Senior Vice President, Communications
American Council on Renewable Energy
genco@acore.org

Dylan Helms
Manager, Communications
American Council on Renewable Energy
helms@acore.org

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https://acore.org/news/acore-statement-on-senate-budget-reconciliation-bill-text/