Reax: President Obama's State of the Union address

January 29, 2014 | By Barbara Vergetis Lundin

The reaction from the energy industry to President Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday night is in and the results are mixed.

Advanced Energy Economy, for example, lauds President Obama as the first in 50 years to be able to claim emerging energy independence.

"That didn't happen by accident, but by the efforts of innovators combined with smart policies. Thanks to these efforts, the U.S. controls its own energy destiny for the first time in a generation," said Graham Richard, CEO of Advanced Energy Economy.

He warns, however, that there could be rough waters ahead.

"The danger now is not dependency. It is complacency. As we emerge from this long recession, we need to continue to make progress toward energy systems that are better and smarter. The established businesses and committed entrepreneurs who are making that happen need fair treatment in the tax code, funding for R&D and support for deployment and adoption of the best technologies," Graham said. "If we continue on this path, someday soon a future president just may announce at a State of the Union that the United States is the world's biggest exporter of energy."

The Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) is also commending the president for his commitment to combating climate change and his stance on homegrown renewable energy resources.

"The president noted in his speech the dramatic changes that are occurring in our country's energy production, distribution and use. He discussed the greater use of domestic renewable energy resources and natural gas, while increasing the energy efficiency of our industries, businesses and homes," BCSE President Lisa Jacobson said. "This recent growth in clean energy sources and technologies has driven U.S. CO₂ emissions down nearly 10 percent since 2005, reversing decades of increases. Today, the U.S. is already halfway to reaching President Obama's goal of a 17 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 2005 levels by 2020."

"Affordable, homegrown and clean energy sources are powering the U.S. economy with jobs and investment, and are promoting the security and diversity of our energy supply," Jacobson added. "Continued research, development and deployment of these technologies will modernize America's aging energy infrastructure and will ensure that the United States becomes the world leader in clean energy technology.

On the other hand, the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity claims that President Obama failed to come clean about the effect of his Climate Action Plan (ACCCE).

"The president ignored the opportunity to level with the American people about the damage his Climate Action Plan will have on the U.S. economy and jobs across the country," said Mike Duncan, president and CEO of ACCCE. "In a puzzling paradox, President Obama decried income inequality, while touting progress on his climate change initiative -- bypassing the fact that increased energy costs place an outsized burden on lower and fixed income families and make it more difficult for businesses to succeed. Regulations spearheaded by his own Environmental Protection Agency aimed at coal-fueled electricity will weaken our economy and our energy security."

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