Congress may soon consider legislation retroactively extending a raft of expired tax subsidies, known as “tax extenders.” One of those is the wind Production Tax Credit, a multi-billion dollar tax credit that subsidizes wind developers for the electricity they generate. This costly handout raises energy prices, destabilizes the electric grid, and benefits wealthy wind lobbyists at the expense of American taxpayers. The rest of the developed world has learned this lesson the hard way:...
Continue Reading...

Last week, news reports indicated the Senate Finance Committee will soon mark up legislation to retroactively extend a number of tax provisions that expired at the end of last year. Of note in this package is the wind Production Tax Credit (PTC). This would be the 10^th extension of the PTC since it became law in 1992. Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa, one of the original authors of the wind PTC, made clear last week in a letter to Chairman Hatch that despite his past statements, he wants...
Continue Reading...

WASHINGTON -- Yesterday, the American Energy Alliance held a press conference call with Indiana Governor Mike Pence regarding the EPA's Climate Rule regulating carbon dioxide from power plants. On the call, Gov. Pence explained how states are well within their rights to not submit a plan to the EPA. Below is some of the media coverage of yesterday's call:

"Pence encourages states to fight greenhouse gas rules" By Maureen Groppe 7/9/15 Fighting the federal government over proposed...

Continue Reading...

This summer, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will finalize its Climate Rule regulating carbon dioxide emissions from power plants—what EPA euphemistically calls its “Clean Power Plan.” The Climate Rule is the foundation of President Obama’s broader agenda to restrict the use of America’s natural energy resources. Also central to the president’s climate agenda is the Production Tax Credit (PTC), a federal tax subsidy for wind energy producers. These two policies—the...
Continue Reading...

This past Sunday, writer Rupert Darwall published an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal detailing the economic and technological problems with the Obama administration's costly climate change agenda. In advance of the UN climate summit in Paris this year, President Obama has pledged to reduce U.S. carbon dioxide emissions up to 28 percent by 2025. Mr. Darwall, author of The Age of Global Warming: A History , explained that the costs of the commitment would significantly outweigh any of...
Continue Reading...

Before the July 4^th Congressional recess, the House began considering the FY 2016 Interior & Environment appropriations bill. A number of other amendments are awaiting consideration for debate when they return. One such well-intentioned amendment by Rep Loudermilk from Georgia stands out from the pack. His amendment reads:

“None of the funds made available by this Act may be used to implement, administer, or enforce section 211(o) of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)).”

So what does...
Continue Reading...

Boiling down the EPA’s so-called “Clean Power Plan” into a 1 minute video is no small task, but our friends at the Independence Institute did just that.

As they explain, the plan could shut down affordable, reliable power plants in favor of more expensive energy resources. While the EPA claims that CPP will increase public health and expand the economy, recent studies indicate otherwise. A study commissioned by the National Black Chamber of Commerce found that EPA’s climate...
Continue Reading...

In an op-ed for the Des Moines Register , presidential candidate Martin O’Malley claims that his “administration would call for 100 percent of our energy to come from renewable sources by 2050.” The former Governor of Maryland and long-shot Democratic hopeful stated “as president, I would use my executive power on day one to declare the transition to a clean energy future the number one priority of our federal government.” O’Malley’s statement amounts to an empty campaign...
Continue Reading...

The Obama administration is pursuing an aggressive plan of closing existing power plants and providing large subsidies of wind and solar electricity generation. Because of the administration’s regulations, 90 gigawatts (GW) of coal-generated power are projected to close. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tells us that power bills will go down as a result of its regulations, but a new report by the Institute for Energy Research shows why electricity rates will only skyrocket under...
Continue Reading...

SCOTUS Slaps EPA for Ignoring the Costs of its Reckless Agenda WASHINGTON -- American Energy Alliance President Thomas Pyle issued the following statement on the Supreme Court's Mercury and Air Toxics Standard (MATS) ruling:

"Today’s Supreme Court decision is an important step toward reining in the Environmental Protection Agency. For too long EPA has ignored the costs of its regulations, which have become so large that they not only harm the economy, but also the health and welfare of...

Continue Reading...