Biden Time in Energy Efficiency
It’s a great day when you can find good news in the news. There’s been way too much news (so much so that it’s really old news) in the last year and a half about the economic crisis, government bailouts and TARP money misspent, the decline of the housing market, unemployment…and the list goes on.
One of those disheartening stories included the closing of established businesses like Republic Windows and Doors in Chicago. The company was forced to close its doors in December of last year but with much animosity from employees – and rightly so – who were angered by the loss of their jobs due to the failure of the company, which was the direct result of Bank of America pulling their funding. And this, after Bank of America received substantial funds from a taxpayer bailout.
I promised good news, though, and here it is. The company is reopening as Serious Materials Chicago. Vice President Joe Biden, along with a few Senators, Chicago’s Mayor Richard Daley, and company CEO Kevin Surace took a tour of the factory. The tour was a stop on Biden’s national campaign to encourage Americans about the success of the Recovery Act.
President Obama’s stimulus package included $8 billion for weatherization and energy efficiency programs. These funds, available through state and local programs, are beginning to have a stimulating effect. For the most part homeowners are beginning to take a serious look at improving the energy efficiency of their homes thanks, in part, to federally offered tax credits. Since the housing market is still moving at a snail’s pace, people are jumping on board to fix up and improve the home they’re already in and one of the best things they can do right now is to increase its efficiency.
This trend is putting energy efficient materials, like windows, in higher demand, which, in turn, means that companies that manufacture, sell, and install such materials can begin to maintain themselves or even expand and grow.
It may be a small step, but it’s something. And right now any something good can be divine.
Posted on May 13th in Solar Politics by Jennifer.