FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 13, 2012
CONTACT: Trey Pollard, (202) 495-3058
Sierra Club Statement on Obama Administration’s 2013 Budget
Washington, D.C. – Today, the Sierra Club released the following statement from Executive Director Michael Brune in response to the release of the President’s FY 2013 budget:
“We appreciate President Obama’s continued commitment to increasing investment in a clean energy economy. By investing in wind and solar power, further research and the deployment of existing cutting-edge energy technologies, we can reduce our dependence on the dirty fuels of the 19th century and help create good-paying American jobs. The President has doubled down on these critical priorities, investing $5 billion in clean energy manufacturing that will help leverage tens of billions more in private sector investments to create thousands of jobs and spark innovation that will help ensure our country is the leader in the sector dominating the global marketplace.
In addition, the President’s focus on energy efficiency initiatives and
implementing historic fuel economy standards are critical steps forward that
will help save American families millions in energy costs while getting them
further on a tank of gas.
The President clearly understands that we must push hard toward a better energy
future, and knows that we cannot just sit around and hope that it happens.
We commend the President for his firm leadership on these issues in the
face of concerted, deep-pocketed efforts to distort the facts about renewable
energy sources and energy efficiency. These attempts to turn back the clock and
mislead Americans into believing that inefficient lighting is better than
efficient lighting, or that polluting energy is better than clean energy will
not work. The President is absolutely right to stand strong in his support.
We remain concerned that this budget marks a third consecutive cut in the
budget for the Environmental Protection Agency, given that enforcement of our
critical clean air and clean water safeguard saves Americans' money and saves
American lives all while spurring the creation of even more jobs.”
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