Washington, D.C. -- Yesterday, Rep. Heath Shuler (D-Waynesville) voted for a jobs bill to jumpstart the manufacturing industry while reducing our dependence on foreign oil. The Home Star Energy Retrofit Act, H.R. 5019, will create roughly 170,000 American jobs in manufacturing by promoting domestically-produced clean energy products. By providing tax incentives and rebates to homeowners who install energy-efficient products and cut down on their household energy use, the bill will save American families as much as $9 billion over the next decade.
“I believe in the job-creating power of the clean energy industry. Most products created for home renovation, especially environmentally friendly renovation, are American made,” said Rep. Shuler. “This bill is an excellent example of how focusing on new types of products can create desperately needed job opportunities in the American manufacturing industry.”
Roughly 2.2 million manufacturing jobs in the U.S. have been lost since December of 2007, according to the National Association of Manufacturers. The Chamber of Commerce has said that the incentives in this bill will “create living-wage jobs for American workers, while providing homeowners the ability to make a substantial reduction in their overall energy costs.”
Under the Home Star jobs bill, American families will be eligible to receive as much as $3,000 for installing insulation, window and door improvements, duct and air sealing, energy-efficient water heaters, and other similar products. They can receive up to $8,000 for performing an energy audit and lowering the amount of energy used in their household.
“The Cash for Clunkers bill showed us that American families want to choose products that are friendly towards our environment and will do so even more often when it makes financial sense,” said Rep. Shuler. “The oil crisis in our Gulf region, coupled with the ever-present problem of getting oil from hostile nations, shows how important it is for our country to become energy independent. This bill will help the U.S. become more energy secure and, above all, provide a much-needed boost to our hard-working American manufacturers.”
The Home Star jobs bill passed the House with bipartisan support (246 to 161), and was endorsed by a number of business, environmental, labor, and consumer groups, such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Home Builders, and the National Association of Manufacturers.
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