Solar Programs Found to Support Small Businesses and Jobs
(Washington, DC) - Today, in a joint hearing of the Investigations & Oversight (I&O) and the Energy and Environment Subcommittees, Members of Congress heard reports on the effectiveness of a Recovery Act program to spur installation of solar and wind energy systems. Congressman Paul Tonko (D-NY), Ranking Member on I&O, invited a representative of a local company from Rensselaer, NY to testify about the effect of the “Section 1603” program on their business. The Section 1603 grant program provides cash grants incentives to commercial or residential owners who invest in renewable energy projects. Congressman Tonko said: “The 1603 program helped Monolith Solar Associates to achieve success. It made the federal government a partner in job creation and deployment of solar energy in the northeast region. It put government on their side, not on their backs. Mr. Erby and his partner, Mark Fobare, continue to create jobs for residents of the Capital Region. This is an economic success story that I would like to see repeated throughout the country.”
Mr. Steve Erby, Vice President of Monolith Solar Associates, testified that the Section 1603 program had been instrumental in the growth of their company. Monolith installs solar energy systems in commercial settings and has relied on Section 1603 funding to offset some of the costs of installation. This support has enabled the company to grow from just 2 employees to over 20 in under 2 years time. As Steve Erby put it, “Without the 1603 program, none of this would have happened.”
Other witnesses also testified as to the efficacy of this program in supporting small businesses around the country. Mr. Rhone Resch, President of the Solar Energy Industries Association, affirmed that hundreds of their member companies rely on these provisions and that the effect on the energy economy was that renewable energy systems were improving their competitive position against other subsidized energy sources such as oil.
At the hearing, Ranking Member Tonko pointed out that no area of America’s energy economy is unsubsidized by the government. In fact, the oil and gas industry have received the lion’s share of those subsidies through permanent tax credits, amounting to almost $450 billion since 1918. By comparison, as of 2009, renewables had received less than $6 billion in federal support over the prior 15 years.
Congressman Tonko also encouraged the Republican Chair to call similar hearings on subsidies to the oil and gas industries. He claimed this would enable the Committee to more appropriately evaluate the entire array of federal support currently provided to all sectors of the energy industry.
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