Today, the House passed the bipartisan Home Star Energy Retrofit Act (HR 5019) by a vote of 246-161 to provide immediate incentives for consumers who renovate their homes to become more energy-efficient–rapidly creating jobs here at home, while saving money for American families.
Through up-front rebates of up to $3,000 for insulation, duct sealing, windows and doors, air sealing and water heaters and incentives for complete home energy-saving renovations, Home Star will:
Create an estimated 168,000 American jobs in construction, manufacturing and retail–industries that have been devastated by the Bush economic crisis
Save about 3 million American families an estimated $200-500 per year on their energy bills, totaling $9 billion over the next 10 years
Reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil–cutting the use of natural gas and home heating oil in an amount equivalent to nearly 7 million barrels of heating oil in 2011
Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT), author of the bill, explains “it’s practical, it’s common sense, it’s a partnership between the public and the private sector”:
Speaker Pelosi on passage:
Today, the House took another step forward to create good-paying, American jobs that cannot be outsourced, to lower energy costs for consumers, and to build our clean energy economy.
The Home Star jobs bill is about building a stronger economy that works for Main Street and the middle class. The legislation will create nearly 168,000 jobs in construction, manufacturing, and retail — some of the hardest hit sectors during the Bush recession. It will cut costs for consumers, decreasing energy bills by up to $500 per year for 3 million families. And it will reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil and dirty fuels, cutting energy use equal to roughly 7 million barrels of heating oil in 2011.
It's not surprising that Republicans offered a poison pill in their motion to recommit — demonstrating, once again, that they are not serious about addressing the top concerns of the American people: job creation, economic security, and energy independence. We will work with the Senate to fix this flawed language and focus.