New Energy Future News

Chicago, IL – On President Obama’s 100th day in office, Congress passed a budget resolution that sets the stage for his ambitious environmental agenda. Further legislation is needed to enact the policies that are assumed in the budget resolution.

“President Obama’s budget means a cleaner, greener, and more prosperous future for Illinois,” said Environment Illinois Program Director Max Muller. “The president and Congress are moving forward to unleash the power of clean energy to transform our economy, stop global warming, and build a sustainable future.”

Earlier this month, Environment Illinois issued a report and state maps of the environmental impacts of the president’s budget. Vision 2010: President Obama’s Budget, Clean Energy and the Environment illustrated how president Obama’s budget could benefit Illinois’s economy and environment, including:

• $27.4 billion over 10 years from making polluters pay for global warming pollution, if the revenues are apportioned by population;
• $1.5 billion in Illinois taxpayer dollars that will no longer subsidize profits for Big Oil;
• 90 sewage treatment plants that exceeded clean water permits in 2005 could be eligible for a statewide total of $90.2 million in funding for repairs and upgrades; and
• 6 toxic waste sites could see accelerated clean up from reinstatement of a polluter pays fee expected to generate $17.2 billion in revenues over 10 years.

By assuming revenues from capping global warming pollution, the president’s proposed budget sets the stage for a new energy plan for America that caps global warming pollution and drives the transformation to a clean energy economy. The latest global warming science means even deeper cuts in pollution in the next 10 years than those in the president’s budget will be required to prevent the catastrophic warming.

“This is a fitting capstone for an historic environmental first 100 days for President Obama,” said Muller. “We look forward to working with Congress on legislation that delivers on the clean, green promise of this budget resolution.”

The first piece of legislation to implement policies assumed in the budget will be considered by the Energy and Environment subcommittee of the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce committee next week. The American Clean Energy and Security Act will set standards for generating renewable electricity, improving energy efficiency, and making science-based cuts in global warming pollution.

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Environment Illinois’s Vision 2010 report can be found at:http://www.environmentillinois.org/reports/new-energy-future/energy/vision-2010-president-obamas-budget-clean-energy--the-environment