On the recordJuly 13, 2016
I believe climate change represents one of the greatest threats to our economic livelihood, our national security, and the health of the planet. To help combat this growing threat, on February, 19, 2015, the President issued a historic executive order which requires that the Federal Government commit to key sustainability goals. This executive order builds off of ongoing low-cost efforts throughout the administration to reduce emissions, save energy, and achieve key sustainability goals. {time} 2300 The efforts bolstered by this executive order have already helped Federal agencies save $1.8 billion in cumulative energy costs. Surely we can all agree that the Federal Government, as the country's largest consumer of energy, should be a leader in cutting energy costs and saving taxpayer dollars, which is exactly what this executive order enables us to do. Specifically, the executive order directs Federal agencies to ensure 25 percent of their total energy consumption is from clean energy sources by 2025 and reduces energy use at Federal buildings by 2\1/2\ percent per year between 2015 and 2025. These are worthy realistic goals to strive for because the consequences of not acting are dire. Unmitigated global warming will reduce our global gross domestic product by almost a quarter in the next 80 years. As a professor at Stanford University said, we are basically throwing away money by not addressing climate change. And to be clear, Mr.…
