After a short break for the Fourth of July, Congress is back at work.

Shortly before the week-long break, the House passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which included a cap-and-trade system and was the first U.S. bill to regulate greenhouse gases.

Today the Senate started working on its own version by holding a hearing in the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. The committee, chaired by Sen. Barbara Boxer of California, heard testimony from Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson and Energy Secretary Steven Chu, among others.

On Wednesday, July 8, the Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing on international trade issues and connections to global warming – the House bill increased trade regulations with countries that produce high numbers of global warming gases – and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will look at the effectiveness of the European Union’s cap-and-trade system.

Politico reported that any cap-and-trade legislation in the Senate bill is unlikely and that a floor vote will not happen before the long summer recess next month.   

Vermont took a big step forward in promoting renewable energy last week by passing a feed-in tariff (FIT) policy. This type of renewable energy incentive guarantees that utility companies will pay owners of renewable energy systems a good price for the energy they produce. Vermont’s FIT policy is one of the first to be passed in the United States.

The law is part of Vermont’s Sustainably Priced Energy Enterprise Development Program, and closely resembles Ontario’s Green Energy Act.

Made popular by Germany, who began using them in the 1990s, feed-in tariffs work by setting prices that utility companies must pay for the energy they receive from private producers such as households and businesses. By doing this, they alleviate the financial burdens of installing renewable energy systems. For more information on feed-in tariffs, go here.

In Vermont’s case, the tariff rates are set not only to pay back the system costs, but to allow producers to generate a small profit. The tariff rates also vary by energy type, with more expensive energy systems bringing in more money. Here are some of the details of the law, as reported in this Paul Gipe article:

• Program cap of 50 mW
• Project size cap of 2.2 mW
• Contract time: 20 years
• Wind energy tariffs:
  • <15 kW: 20 cents/kWh
  • >15 kW: 14 cents/kWh
• Solar tariff: 30 cents/kWh
• Regulatory examination of tariffs by Sept. 15, 2009 and new rates set in January 2010
• Future tariffs based on cost of generation plus profit less applicable tax credits and other incentives

According to the Energy Information Administration, the average price of residential energy in Vermont is about 14.3 cents/kWh. For information on what other states are implementing feed-in tariffs, see this report (PDF).

PHOTO BY ISTOCKPHOTO/JOEY CHUNG

Here in Kansas we got some unexpected good news this week. There’s new momentum at the state level to pass new regulations to promote renewable energy. (Kansas has lagged behind most other U.S. states on this.) For any fellow Kansans out there, here’s an article from the The Lawrence Journal World with more details.

For others in the United States, here’s how you can find out more about what your state is doing to promote renewable energy. Follow the links below to see how your state compares in two key areas:

1. Does your state have a net metering law?

These laws affect the price homeowners get paid for any electricity they produce. Check out the Department of Energy’s EERE Website for more on how net metering policies work, including this handy map which shows which states have net metering laws. (Hint: All but eight states do.)

2. How about a renewable portfolio standard?  

These are goals the states set to mandate how much of their electricity must come from renewable sources. So far, 24 states have RPS policies. You can find out which ones by checking out this map, as well as this table, to see which states are setting the highest goals. (As usual, California is at the head of the class on renewable energy, but many other states have set ambitious goals.)

I’m looking forward to the day that Kansas is on these lists.

To find out about other renewable energy-related activities that are happening in your state, check out this EERE page of State Activities and Partnerships.

The recent announcements of President-elect Barack Obama’s new energy policy team provides opportunities for citizens to voice their support for renewable energy before the team even enters the White House in January.

The Apollo Alliance wasted little time after Obama announced who would fill his energy cabinet positions.

Phil Angelides, chairman of the Apollo Alliance, urged people to show their support for the Apollo Economic Recovery Act by contacting Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change, Carol Browner.

“We’ve got to make sure Browner knows thousands of people are counting on her to prevail over Big Oil’s powerful lobby,” Angelides said in an e-mail. “So in the coming days, we’ll flood her office with a chorus of supportive voices pushing for clean energy and good jobs.”

The Apollo Alliance proposed The Apollo Economic Recovery Act earlier this month. It is an economic recovery plan that encourages government to invest in green technology to create 650,000 green-collar jobs across the country. The stimulus plan costs $50 billion and aims to end the nation’s reliance on foreign oil by improving energy efficiency of building, increasing clean energy tax credits, expanding home weatherization programs, modernizing the transmission grid, increasing investments in rapid transit and repairing roads and bridges.

The Act has similarities to proposals made by Obama and the new members of his energy team.

For more information on the appointment of Carol Browner read The New York Times article about her and her new position created by Obama.

This week, Congress debated an auto industry bailout bill of $25 billion. The executives of the Big Three Automakers – Ford, Chrysler and General Motors – testified at congressional hearings (after spending tens-of-thousands of dollars to fly in on their luxury private jets, one of which cost $36 million) and asked for federal support.

Reactions to the Detroit automakers’ requests have been mixed, from support to flat-out opposition.

The Civil Society Institute (the organization behind 40MPG.org and CLEAN) sent out an action alert at the beginning of the lame-duck session, asking its supporters to contact members of Congress and President-elect Barack Obama’s transition team in support of a Green Auto Bailout. The goal being to have conditions on a bailout that would require the car manufactures to develop and produce more hybrids, clean diesels and fuel-efficient vehicles, as well as drop their lawsuits against states with higher global warming emissions standards, such as California, Vermont, Rhode Island and New Mexico.

“If taxpayers are going to be put at risk by guaranteeing new loans, then any such new help should be conditioned on the U.S. car companies ending their campaign to frustrate state-level efforts to clean up car and light-truck emissions that cause global warming,” said 40MPG.org founder Pam Solo. “Further, Congress should insist that every penny of the $25 billion in new loan guarantees that Detroit is seeking to building the cars of tomorrow, not the gas-guzzling dinosaurs of yesterday.”

Although Congress is leaving for Thanksgiving break, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said they may call Congress back in session at the beginning of next month to continue work on the automaker bailout bill and other economic issues before the next holiday break.

40MPG and CLEAN are still encouraging people to sign and e-mail the action letters, since the issue is still on the table.

There is some support for environmental preconditions in Congress, but others argue clean energy restrictions might make the bill more difficult to pass. It is estimated that if even one American automaker goes under, more than 2 million jobs will be lost in 2009.

Here are some links to other articles on this topic:

MSNBC

CNN

The New York Times

Fox News

In a recent press release, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) announced that it is ready for President-elect Barack Obama — especially after the Bush administration ignoring international progress on climate change for the past eight years. Not only does Obama argue for progress, he says he wants to find a common solution to our energy, environmental and economic problems. To do that, he says he wants to build a clean energy economy which will create millions of new jobs, expand capital investment, stop the nation’s dependence on oil, and prevent global warming.

To start, Obama’s cap-and-trade policy would require all permits for emitting carbon dioxide to be auctioned off, with proceeds going towards clean energy, habitat protections, and other transition relief for families. Last month, six of the 10 Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative states in the Northeast raised $39 million doing just that, and if that price holds, the auctions could yield more than $500 million a year.

The soon-to-be President also has outlined plans to reduce global warming emissions by 80 percent by 2050. He’s pledged to make 10 percent of the nation’s electricity come from renewable energy sources by 2012 and 25 percent by 2025. According to UCS analysis, if just 20 percent of the nation’s electricity comes from renewable sources by 2020, it could generate 185,000 new jobs; gain $66.7 billion in private capital investment; give $25.6 billion to rural landowners for leasing their land for biomass and wind energy production; and create $2 billion in new local tax revenues. On top of that, consumer electric and natural gas bills would reduce by $10.5 billion in 2020 and $31.8 billion in 2030.

And when all of this happens, it would reduce global warming emissions in 2020 by 223 million metric tons a year — the same as taking 36 million cars off the road. Now, that’s a change I think everyone could handle.

Election Day is only four days away, and if you aren’t one of the more than 15 million people to have already cast a ballot, then you’ve got just a little time left to do some research, find out where you’re supposed to vote, or get answers to any other election questions you may have. Here are a few resources to help you find the information you're looking for:

Wondering if you really are registered or how to find out? Maybe you’d like to know what other issues will be on the ballot and make sure you understand what exactly you’re voting “Yes” or “No” for. Find links to sample ballots for your precinct along with answers to these and many other election questions in Get Ready to Vote on Election Day.

Yup, you’re registered, but which polling place is yours? Find your voting place in Find out Where and When to Cast Your Vote.

Curious about those ballot initiatives you’ve been hearing about (Vote Yes on 2! Vote No on 3!)? Our sister magazine Utne Reader has found a new online resource for researching all those other questions on the ballot — you know, everything that comes after “Please fill in the oval to the left of the presidential candidate of your choice.” Check out Deciding Ballot Initiatives Before Election Day.

You can find a quick look at the presidential candidates’ positions on energy in The Presidential Candidates on Energy Issues and The Candidates Discuss Energy, and on the environment, in Where do the Presidential Candidates Stand on Environmental Issues? These articles also contain links to a number of additional resources for anyone wanting to dig deeper.

Whew! Just in case that’s not enough fun for you, Utne Reader has stumbled on some actual election entertainment. Check out Beat the Political Experts, Win Cash to find out how winning this election guessing game can get you $500.

Before you know it, the election will be over, the votes will be counted, and the 44^th President of United States will have a lot on his plate — so why not make it a plate full of local (as in, the White House front lawn) and organic goodness? Check out Mother Earth News writer Roger Doiron’s plans for the new administration in This Lawn is Your Lawn.