The Political Perspectives of Representatives Israel & Tonko

New York — Representatives Steve Israel and Paul Tonko recently wowed an audience of Alliance Associates, Board members and friends when sharing their enthusiastic and inspiring perspectives on the state of play in energy policy.  The event, part of the Alliance's Policy Perspectives series, was sponsored by 1E.

Key themes at the event, were the lack of effective legislation in the past 30 years, as well as the financial impact of energy efficiency — including opportunities currently being missed and the costs of continuing the status quo.

Congress is Like College

“Congress is like college,” Rep. Israel began, explaining that each member of Congress finds an area in which he or she is most interested to “major” and focus on. For Rep. Israel, his major would be energy. He is particularly concerned with energy security and the amount of money spent each year by the military on energy needs.

“We’re borrowing money from China to fund military protection of our energy interests in the Middle East,” Rep. Israel said. Energy independence, he concluded, would save money on both ends; however without comprehensive energy legislation, energy independence cannot be gained. 

Change the Play

Rep. Israel quoted a conversation he had with former Nebraska Rep. Tom Osborne, who coached football for the University of Nebraska: “I don’t know everything there is to know about politics, but I do know more about football than anyone else. If I’d been using the same play for 30 years and didn’t pick up a yard… I’d change the play.”

Both congressmen voiced their frustration with the stagnation of energy legislation in Congress, in particular the lack of market indicators to spur investment.

Energy Efficiency Should Power Our Energy Thinking

Rep. Tonko mirrored Rep. Israel’s sentiments on energy policy but focused more on the potential market impact of energy efficiency that is currently missing from our economy. He discussed the incredible potential for job creation with renewable energy, support for waste energy conversation and, particularly, energy efficiency projects.

“Energy efficiency should power our energy thinking … we should be aggressive,” Rep. Tonko said.

He focused particularly on manufacturing efficiency, which he says has been largely overlooked. Of the three major sectors of the economy (service, manufacturing and agriculture), manufacturing would have the largest potential benefit from increased efficiency measures, but the market drive is not there yet. Policy needs to drive demand towards investing in energy efficiency becoming a wise business decision, according to Rep. Tonko.

Homework Assignment

Following a Q&A session, Rep. Tonko challenged audience members to write to their representatives explaining why support for energy legislation would benefit their businesses.

“After you send in your letter, email a friend or colleague in another part of the country, tell him or her what you’ve done and challenge them to do the same," Rep. Tonko said. "The squeaky wheel gets the grease and we need to make as much noise as we can,” he added.