On the recordJune 14, 2012
I rise again to continue the fight for our effort to extend the production tax credit for wind. I am going to continue to return to the floor every morning until we get the PTC extended. It has a positive economic effect on each and every one of our States and we ought to immediately extend it. If we do not, there are tremendous risks because there will be uncertainty. There will be 37,000 jobs at risk, per the estimate of the American Wind Energy Association, in 2013, if we let this important, crucial tax credit expire. On the other hand, looking at this prohibitively, a recent study by Navigant concludes that a stable tax policy would allow the wind industry to create and save 54,000 jobs. That is a clear choice. Do we want to lose 37,000 jobs or do we want to create and save 54,000 more? Over the last number of years in tough economic times, the wind industry has been a bright spot. We have seen growth in the wind industry on the manufacturing side, and these are good-paying jobs. But we are at a make-or-break moment for wind energy. If we let the wind PTC expire, we will lose thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in investment. We also run the real risk of losing our position in the global economic race for clean energy technology. Other countries are taking note. While we are dithering in the Congress, our foreign competitors are literally eating our lunch.…





