A large part of President Barack Obama’s campaign, and victory, last year, was his administration’s record on energy policy. On Friday, the administration released its Blueprint for a Clean and Secure Energy Future, detailing plans for the next few years.
The blueprint speaks to several initiatives that the president hopes to get through Congress (good luck with that!), across the energy spectrum.
One of the biggest, and most expected, components of the plan focuses on a massive expansion of renewable energy, fed by a new line of research to be funded by a $2 billion Energy Security Trust, supported by off-shore oil-drilling taxes.
“The President’s proposal sets aside $2 billion over 10 years and will support research into a range of cost-effective technologies – like advanced vehicles that run on electricity, homegrown biofuels, fuel cells, and domestically produced natural gas,” the blueprint says. “The mandatory funds would be set aside from royalty revenues generated by oil and gas development in Federal waters of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), already included in the administration’s five year plan.”
Energy efficiency also plays a large part in the president’s plan.
“Cutting the amount of energy we waste in our cars and trucks, in our homes, buildings, and in our factories, will make us a stronger, more resilient, and more competitive economy,” the blueprint says. “Improvements in energy efficiency are critical to building a clean and secure energy future.”
The plan lays out more than $200 million in specific rewards and incentives for state governments and private sector partners to encourage an increased focus on using the energy we already produce more efficiently.
In typical “the rest of the world matters”-style Obama policy making, the plan concludes with ideas on how to work with fellow G20 nations and “the Clean Energy Ministerial and other fora” to promote safe and efficient energy production, as well as securing an even more vital place at the head of global energy development, working with the International Energy Agency and increasing American nuclear energy exports.
