Thanks to creation of the Iowa Power Fund and Office of Energy Indepedence two years ago, Iowa is one of the first states in the nation to receive $16 million from President Obama for renewable energy and energy efficiency efforts.
The U.S. Secretary of Energy came to Iowa to make the announcement on Monday. The $16 million is the first installment of federal recovery funds for energy that will total about $40 million. (more…)
President Obama made an Earth Day visit to Iowa on Wednesday to talk about energy. He visited Trinity Structural Towers in Newton, which manufactures wind towers. The President’s visit highlights the work Iowa has done over the last three years to lead the world in renewable energy.
Through the $100 million Iowa Power Fund and other initiatives, Iowa has created over 2,300 “green” jobs and is now 2nd in the nation in wind energy, 1st in the nation in ethanol production, and 2nd in the nation in biodiesel production.
Click here for more information on Iowa’s Renewable Energy efforts.
WHO-TV has President Obama’s speech in Newton on their web page.
The Iowa House of Representatives today approved a wind energy package designed to create more jobs and encourage more renewable energy production. The bills approved today will expand wind energy production and renewable energy tax credits, create wind innovation zones, and encourage more renewable energy research in Iowa.
“Over the last two years, Iowa has become a world leader in renewable energy and created thousands of ‘green’ jobs across our state,” said State Representative Vicki Lensing, D-Iowa City, who won approval of Senate File 456. “The package we approved today will expand our wind energy efforts to encourage more small wind production by individuals, schools, hospitals and universities.” (more…)
On a statewide tour this week, Democratic legislative leaders said the Legislature will focus on helping Iowans rebuild and recover during the 2009 legislative session, which begins on Monday, January 12th.
“With the national recession beginning to take hold in Iowa, we know thousands of Iowans are struggling to make ends meet. Our goal is to provide more economic security for families through good-paying jobs, energy independence, and a world-class education for our kids,” said House Speaker Pat Murphy of Dubuque.
Renewable and alternative energy have been the centerpiece of the Democrats’ economic plans since 2007 and the effort will continue in 2009. The bipartisan effort to make Iowa an energy independent state has included such initiatives as the Iowa Power Fund and efforts to improve energy efficiency. The result over the last two years has been 2,300 new “green” jobs for Iowans. (more…)
In the 2007, the Legislature created the Iowa Power Fund and the Office of Energy Independence to keep Iowa a world leader in renewable energy production and technology. The Power Fund Board made its largest award yesterday with a $14.5 million grant to Poet LLC to build a new ethanol plant in Emmetsburg using the next generation of technology, cellulosic ethanol.
State Representative Nathan Reichert of Muscatine serves on the Iowa Power Fund Board of Directors and said the Poet award is exactly what the Legislature had in mind when they created the Power Fund.