Opinion: More renewables for states - Dennis McGinn - POLITICO.com

Opinion: More renewables for states - Dennis McGinn - POLITICO.com 

"Well, according to recent polls conducted by George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communications, 77 percent of Republicans support using much more renewable energy than we use today, something policymakers and Norquist should take note of.

   

Renewable Portfolio Standards drive renewable energy development, but more importantly in difficult economic times, RPS policies can decrease electricity rates. For example, in Michigan, the Public Service Commission found that renewable energy plants produce electricity at a rate 30 percent cheaper than new coal. And contrary to the inaccurate studies touted by Norquist and politically charged organizations like the John Locke Foundation, North Carolinians save about a $1 per month on their electricity bills because of their RPS. The falling costs of renewable energy for consumers is a result of solar prices decreasing nearly 80 percent in the past 10 years and wind prices decreasing nearly 40 percent in the past five years."