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Senator Grassley to Keynote 2015 National Renewable Energy Policy Forum

Washington D.C. — Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa will headline the 2015 National Renewable Energy Policy Forum hosted by the American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE) in Washington, D.C. on April 23. Sen. Grassley continues his career-long work as a champion of renewable energy technologies to secure a prosperous economic future for Iowans and the entire nation.

“Iowa is a good example of how homegrown renewable energy can provide a major economic boost wherever it’s given a chance,” Grassley said. “For example, the high tech industry has located data centers in Iowa in part to take advantage of abundant wind energy. Renewable energy helps the economy, the environment and national security. Policies out of Washington ought to help the industry where possible and not impede the industry going forward. Renewable energy deserves every chance to reach its full potential.”

Sen. Grassley wrote the first Production Tax Credit (PTC) law in 1992, which has helped the U.S. wind power sector compete with incumbent technologies and power 18 million households, creating over 50,000 jobs and lowering costs to be fully competitive with fossil fuel sources like coal and natural gas.

ACORE’s Senior VP for Policy and Chief Strategy Officer, Todd Foley, commented, “We are thrilled to have Senator Grassley, the ‘father of the PTC,’ joining us to keynote the Policy Forum this year. Senator Grassley is a long-time champion of policies to harness America’s abundant renewable energy resources, which ensure competition and diversify our nation’s power and transportation fuels markets. His leadership has helped lower electricity bills and fuel costs for consumers in Iowa and across the country. He is a great example of how pro-business leaders in Washington can bring value to the triple bottom line of American consumers, industry and agriculture.”

Currently, a number of key federal provisions for renewable energy are under threat. The PTC expired in December, 2014, and its counterpart, the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for renewable energy is set to expire at the end of 2016. Similarly, the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) is seeing significant pressure for repeal from oil-related lobbying groups.

The 2015 National Renewable Energy Policy Forum will address these issues and more, to develop and advance the critical near- and long-term policy priorities that will motivate the President in his last two years in office, the new Congress, state leaders, and the emerging slate of 2016 Presidential candidates.

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About ACORE’s Policy Forum:

The ACORE National Renewable Energy Policy Forum is an annual event that brings together high-level speakers from government, business and non-profits to discuss the critical energy policy issues surrounding renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable development, the environment and related fields. Additional information is available at:http://www.acorepolicyforum.com/

About ACORE: 

ACORE, a 501(c)(3) non-profit membership organization, is dedicated to building a secure and prosperous America with clean, renewable energy. ACORE seeks to advance renewable energy through finance, policy, technology, and market development and is concentrating its member focus in 2015 on National Defense & Security, Power Generation & Infrastructure, and Transportation. Additional information is available at www.acore.org

ACORE Media Contact:
Kevin Haley
(202) 777-7584
haley@acore.org