Advanced Geothermal Innovation Leadership Act of 2019--Motion to Proceed

Floor Speech

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Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise in support of the American Energy Innovation Act--a compilation of energy-related measures that has been reported, with bipartisan support, by the Senate's Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Let me start by recognizing the tremendous efforts of the very committed and dedicated chairman of that committee, Lisa Murkowski, and of the ranking member, Joe Manchin, and their work in bringing this comprehensive energy package to the Senate floor. Under their leadership, the committee has worked very hard to craft a bipartisan package that seeks to lower energy costs for consumers, to diversify our energy portfolio, and to facilitate and encourage the use of cleaner energy sources.

The American Energy Innovation Act includes several bills that I either authored or cosponsored, including the Better Energy Storage Technology Act, known as the BEST Act, which supports energy storage research and development; the Weatherization Enhancement and Local Energy Efficiency Investment and Accountability Act, which reauthorizes the Weatherization Assistance Program; the Wind Energy Research and Development Act, which supports targeted investments in wind energy; and the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act, as well as the Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act, which both promote energy efficiency.

I am particularly pleased that this agreement includes legislation I authored with Senator Heinrich. It is what is known as the BEST Act, the Better Energy Storage Technology Act. This bipartisan bill would support energy storage research and development, which would, in turn, advance the deployment of renewable energy. Federal investments in the research, development, and deployment of energy storage technologies would enable the expansion of renewable energy sources that are essential in combating climate change.

Energy storage systems actually provide a wide range of benefits. First, these technologies increase the reliability and resiliency of our electric grid by limiting potential disruptions. Energy storage allows for the better management of supply and demand on our Nation's power grid.

Second, this type of technology can decrease energy costs. In the State of Maine, the price of electricity can rise steeply during the coldest days of the year. In late 2017 and early 2018, very cold temperatures in New England led to higher energy costs that amounted to more than $1 billion being spent in the wholesale energy market in only 15 days.

The next generation of energy storage technologies could also help to transform our grid, meaning that we would no longer need to generate more expensive power to meet demand during the hottest and coldest days of the year. Instead, we could use more affordable sources of energy that have been stored for later use.

Finally, energy storage systems can allow for more intermittent renewable sources, such as wind or solar power, to be placed on the grid and to be used precisely when they are needed. Think of that. Right now, if the wind is not blowing, obviously we are not producing wind energy. If the Sun is not shining, we are not producing solar- generated energy. Yet, if during those windy periods and on those sunny days we could figure out how to store the energy that is produced so that it may be released later for electricity on the grid, what a difference it would make.

Off the coast of Maine, offshore wind turbines can produce electricity almost 50 percent of the time due to our relatively persistent offshore winds, but with next-generation energy storage technology, we could utilize this wind power closer to 100 percent of the time by storing the electricity that is produced so that it may be used when the wind is not blowing. That is why I am so excited about the potential for improving our energy storage technologies.

We all think of batteries. Certainly, coming up with better, more efficient batteries with which to store electricity is part of the answer, but there are other technologies that are going to be available if we make a concerted effort to devote resources to research and development and deployment.

For these reasons, I am especially delighted that the BEST Act was included in this package, and I hope it will be enacted swiftly.

Next, I would like to turn to a program that is very important to many low-income families and seniors in the State of Maine, and that is the weatherization program. I thank Senators Murkowski and Manchin for including the bill that I authored with Senators Coons, Reed, and Shaheen that reauthorizes the Weatherization Assistance Program.

Through my position on the Committee on Appropriations, I have worked with my colleagues to secure an increase of $51 million for weatherization assistance for fiscal year 2020. In fact, virtually every year, this is something on which I and the Senators whom I mentioned work together to achieve. Oftentimes, regrettably, the President's budget eliminates the funding for the weatherization program, but with bipartisan support, the members of the Committee on Appropriations work hard to include it in the funding bills. One reason we do so is that, whether it is insulating them or replacing windows or installing heat pumps, weatherizing our houses pays off. In fact, on average, weatherization returns a 4 to 1 on the investment.

Since 2010, the State of Maine has received a little more than $22 million in funding, and it has been able to successfully weatherize nearly 2,500 homes and rental units across the State. What a difference that has made to the families who live in those homes and to the seniors who were once living in drafty homes, for their energy costs were much higher than they needed to be because their homes were not well insulated. It also makes those homes a lot more comfortable for our seniors and low-income families.

Encouraging the adoption of energy efficiency measures is one of the easiest, yet effective mechanisms for reducing energy consumption, lessening pollution, and ultimately saving money for families, businesses, communities, and governments at all levels.

In addition to weatherization, this comprehensive package supports crucial investments in renewable energy, including the Wind Energy Research and Development Act that I introduced with Senator Smith. This bill would reauthorize the Department of Energy's Office of Wind Energy. It would support grants in order to improve the efficiency, reliability, and capacity of wind energy generation. The Aqua Ventus program, which aims to be the first floating, deepwater, offshore wind project in the United States, has been under development by the University of Maine and a consortium of both public and private partners for many years now. That consortium and the University of Maine, in particular, could benefit from these targeted investments in offshore wind energy.

Finally, another important component of this comprehensive bill is energy efficiency. I am pleased that the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act is included in this package. As an original cosponsor of this bill, which is also known as the Portman-Shaheen energy efficiency legislation, I recognize that it can kick-start the use of energy efficiency technologies that are commercially available right now and can be deployed by residential, commercial, and industrial energy users. It can also improve the energy efficiency of the Federal Government, which happens to be our Nation's largest consumer of energy.

I congratulate the bill's sponsors, Senators Shaheen and Portman, for crafting this commonsense bill and for their relentless efforts in getting it across the finish line.

Again, I express my appreciation to Chairman Murkowski and Ranking Member Manchin.

I would also like to highlight another energy efficiency bill that is included in this package, and that is the Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act, which I sponsored with Senator Mark Warner.

In Maine, our schools have made tremendous progress on energy efficiency, but it can be challenging for schools to take full advantage of programs that lower energy costs, in part because school officials may not know where to start. A lot of these programs are scattered in different agencies across the Federal Government.

Our bipartisan bill would create a coordinating structure within the Department of Energy that would streamline available Federal energy efficiency programs, assist school administrators with navigating available Federal financing, and thus reduce school buildings' energy costs.

Again, I want to thank the committee leaders for their excellent work on this package of energy legislation, and I would urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting the adoption of the American Energy Innovation Act. This is an area where we can truly make a difference for our constituents, our communities, our States, our levels of government, and for our country.

Let's get on with the adoption of this very worthwhile package of energy bills.

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