Dept. of Energy's loan program helped Tesla; now it needs to help low income communities
While most people have heard of Tesla, far fewer have heard of the United States Department of Energy Loan Programs Office, a $40 billion fund inside the DOE that helped fund one of Tesla's first car factories and launch the company.
The DOE loan fund has an important, but limited, scope to assist private sector companies with innovative initiatives. And while this is important, its scope must be expanded so it can support the energy transition for a far greater number of Americans, including the widespread adoption of proven technologies especially in low, moderate and underserved communities.
Home energy use is one of the key contributors to climate change. If we as a nation are going to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, we must improve the efficiency of our buildings by adding insulation, replacing old lightbulbs with LEDs, installing efficient heating and cooling systems, and switching to renewable energy sources. But for many, access to these upgrades are out of reach despite providing individuals and their communities with greater energy security.
One of the pillars of Secretary Granholm's agenda at the Department of Energy is environmental justice and targeted investment in disproportionately impacted low and moderate income and underserved communities. Congress should authorize the DOE to expand the definition of innovation and go beyond technology definitions to provide for innovations in deployment and financing approaches that provide greater access to the benefits of proven clean energy technology for under-represented and low income communities. In energy terms, this means community solar, rooftop solar + storage, even virtual power plants. This could also mean decommissioning dirty and expensive "peaker" power plants that are often found in poorer neighborhoods, reducing cost and complexity of safe power grid maintenance, and creating greater resiliency for our communities.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/dept-of-energy-s-loan-program-helped-tesla-now-it-needs-to-help-low-income-communities/ar-AAOFMK7