Accounting for more than 40 percent of our energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, the building sector can either be our worst enemy or our best ally in the battle for a sustainable future. EESI believes there is a full spectrum of opportunities for the building industry to shrink its environmental impact and become stewards of the natural systems on which we all depend, while enhancing comfort, saving money, and achieving multiple goals through good design. Low-energy design strategies and technologies, use of renewable energy, water-efficient systems and environmentally preferable, nontoxic materials must become the benchmark for all building construction and renovation, and be maximized in retrofits. The federal government, which owns and operates nearly 500,000 facilities, has an opportunity and responsibility to lead by example, and this will allow the revolution in the buildings industry to truly get underway.

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“We are in a crisis. It is time to face it head-on with all the tools we have. Deployment plans by the National Academies of Science and by various private organizations show the way. The key remaining ingredient is a national will. The good news is that the U.S. can virtually eliminate use of petroleum in our passenger cars by 2050 with the right combination of policies, research and assistance to commercialize a portfolio of vehicle and fuel technologies. Efficiency, biofuels, natural gas, battery electric and fuel cell electric vehicles all will make a contribution,” they said.

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The President’s FY 11 budget request for the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EE/RE) programs is $2.36 billion (approximately eight percent of the total DOE budget), an increase of $113 million (five percent above the FY 10 appropriations). Nuclear Energy programs received an increase of $42 million (five percent above FY 10 appropriations) and Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability programs increased by $14 million (five percent above FY 10 appropriations). The budget request for fossil energy decreased by $191 million (20 percent below FY 10 appropriations), primarily through a $105 million cut (43 percent below FY 10 appropriations) in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) program was authorized in the America COMPETES Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-69), and is responsible for funding specific “high-risk, high-payoff, game-changing research and development projects to meet the nation’s long-term energy challenges.” The FY 11 budget includes a request of $300 million for this program, following its initial FY 09 funds of approximately $400 million.

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The President’s FY 11 budget request for the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EE/RE) programs is $2.36 billion (approximately eight percent of the total DOE budget), an increase of $113 million (five percent above the FY 10 appropriations). Nuclear Energy programs received an increase of $42 million (five percent above FY 10 appropriations) and Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability programs increased by $14 million (five percent above FY 10 appropriations). The budget request for fossil energy decreased by $191 million (20 percent below FY 10 appropriations), primarily through a $105 million cut (43 percent below FY 10 appropriations) in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) program was authorized in the America COMPETES Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-69), and is responsible for funding specific “high-risk, high-payoff, game-changing research and development projects to meet the nation’s long-term energy challenges.” The FY 11 budget includes a request of $300 million for this program, following its initial FY 09 funds of approximately $400 million.

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Overall biomass energy funding levels (mandatory and discretionary) would increase a little more than five percent in FY 11 compared to the FY 10 regular appropriations. Bioenergy programs also have received a significant infusion of additional funds ($777 million) in FY 09 and FY 10 through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA, P.L. 111-5). In addition, significant additional federal mandates and incentives for bioenergy production are provided through the Renewable Fuel Standard and in the tax code (various biofuel and biopower producer tax credits, investment tax credits, and fuel blender tax credits).

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Livability—the administration’s term for increased emphasis on how transportation shapes community development and can provide Americans more travel options—is evidenced in the proposed budget by more than $500 million in new funding, split between the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). A focus on livability is expected to have benefits for air quality, public health, energy savings, and greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction. The rest of the proposed budget, however, represents very little change in how these issues and public goals are addressed. A special fund to help reduce GHG emissions within FTA, in fact, saw a significant decrease from $75 million to $53 million. Though it is ultimately more important how these smaller funds leverage and influence larger capital expenditures, a substantial decline in resources for these efforts is inconsistent with the need for transportation to play a proportional role in meeting the nation’s GHG reduction goals.

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The President’s FY 11 budget request for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is $10 billion, a decrease of approximately $300 million (three percent decrease from FY 10 appropriations). EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson indicated that the slight cut in EPA funds for FY 11 are in response to the President’s call to streamline agency operations through targeted program investments. The Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Reporting Registry increased to $20.8 million, an increase of approximately $4 million, as EPA prepares to implement its GHG endangerment finding under the Clean Air Act. In addition, the President has requested $30 million in new funds to support developing and deploying the technical capacity to address GHGs, with $25 million of those funds in state grants. The popular Energy STAR program is slated to receive $55.5 million, an increase of $3 million from FY 10 appropriations.

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Finally, the groups state, because “it is taxpaying businesses and individuals who will absorb most of the increased costs associated with a climate change policy, it makes sense to return the revenues as much as possible to all individuals and businesses – including payroll tax reductions that would benefit both employers and workers – in a way that does not distort the price signals needed to reduce energy use. Such a tax reduction will lead to other benefits for the economy and thus provide an economic dividend and shrink the economic impact of the cap-and-trade program.”

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“Clearly the stimulus and economic recovery bill will provide the greatest boost to changing the outlook for clean energy investments, rather than the proposed FY 2010 budget,” said Carol Werner, EESI Executive Director. “While the proposed budget heads the country in the right direction overall in its increased support for investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, and should be commended for that, at the same time we were disappointed that EPA’s Energy Star program received essentially flat funding. DOE’s water power program not only had received no additional investment in the stimulus package but was cut 25% ($10 million) in the proposed FY2010 budget, and yet these technologies offer immense near-term benefits. As the country grapples with how to make very significant progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the near term, the willingness of the administration and Congress to invest in accelerating the transition to a clean energy economy will be tested by the FY2011 budget….because it will not have the advantage of this year’s major stimulus package to bolster it.” Below are clean energy budget highlights from DOE, USDA, EPA, HUD, DOL and DOT.

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The President’s FY 10 budget request for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) represents the highest level of funding for the agency in its 39-year history: $10.5 billion in discretionary budget authority, an increase of $7.6 billion from FY 09 appropriations. $111.6 million is requested for the Climate Protection Program, an increase of $17.4 million from FY 09 appropriations, which includes funding to implement EPA’s proposed greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting rule that is still undergoing public comment. $5 million is proposed for providing analytical support in anticipation of a future cap-and-trade program, including offset verification. The popular Energy STAR program is slated to receive $50.7 million, an increase of $1 million from FY 09 appropriations.

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