New Bill Proposes $30B To Help Manufacturers Retool for Clean Energy Economy

A new Senate bill would provide up to $30 billion for factories to retool their operations for clean energy manufacturing and production. The Investments for Manufacturing Progress and Clean Technology (IMPACT) Act of 2009 is co-sponsored by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.).

Under the program, states would set up revolving loans to allow companies to retool factories or otherwise green their operations. It is intended to assist small- to medium-sized companies of fewer than 500 employees in retooling, expanding or establishing domestic clean energy manufacturing operations and improving energy efficiency. The revolving loan program would last for two years.

The bill was formed with the ailing automotive supply industry in mind. “We can revive American manufacturing through investments in clean energy,” Brown said. “This bill will help our manufacturers retool, put our auto suppliers back to work, and produce clean energy technologies.” Additionally, manufacturers having a hard time coping with rising energy prices could get loans to install more efficient equipment or on-site renewable energy.

The bill would also modernize the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP), the federal-state partnership which provides support to small and mid-sized manufacturers. Currently, our nation’s 59 MEP centers receive slightly more than $100 million in federal funds each year, with states matching the federal contribution two-to-one. Brown’s bill would provide the MEP program with $1.5 billion in federal funds over five years to help manufacturers diversify to clean energy markets and adopt innovative, energy efficient manufacturing technologies.

Under the bill, the federal share of MEP funding would increase to 50 percent. Based on the MEP’s current average cost per consultation, the additional federal funding in this bill could enable MEP to reach at least 10,000 additional U.S. manufacturers each year.

“The wide-spread fallout from Chrysler and GM continues to devastate communities across the country, which is why we need to do everything we can to help our suppliers,” Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), a cosponsor of the legislation said. “I am pleased this legislation will help these companies make investments in clean energy technologies, promoting a 21st Century manufacturing strategy that will create jobs in the emerging green economy.”

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