[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 14878]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       CLEAN AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

  (Mr. HIGGINS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight the importance of 
clean energy sources and the leading role America is poised to play in 
this field.
  Earlier this summer, the company SolarCity announced its intention to 
open one of the largest solar production plants in the world in 
Buffalo, New York. This display of renewable energy would be a 
tremendous addition to the western New York community through the 
creation of over 1,000 jobs; however, the continued growth in renewable 
energy is dependent on Congress enacting the right policies.
  This is why we must extend the solar investment tax credits which are 
due to expire at the end of 2016. We also need to ensure that consumers 
selling energy back to the grid are able to do so at predictable and 
fair prices.
  That is why today I have sent a letter to the Secretary of Energy 
urging his office to formulate best practices for net metering. This 
allows those who generate their own electricity from solar power to 
feed what they do not use back to the grid.
  Just as the Buffalo Niagara region was an early adopter of 
hydroelectricity, we intend to be a leader in clean energy technologies 
like solar power as well.

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