States Lead On Clean Energy

"Taken together, innovations from the states provide the foundation of a national program that rapidly reduces our dependence on foreign oil while creating good jobs for America's workers. Such a program will also create the cutting-edge technology necessary to cut greenhouse gas emissions and restore the environment. If the president really wants to end our addiction to oil, all he needs to do is turn the states' leadership into a national commitmentâ€"by creating a federal program that amplifies the best of those practices.

He has many examples to choose from. Almost half of the states have enacted a renewable portfolio standard (RPS), which requires utilities to increase their use of renewable energy sources over time...Arizona, Vermont, North Carolina and 21 other states have adopted creative public-private funding mechanisms that make investments in clean energy initiatives without straining budgets or raising taxes. New York, Missouri and Hawaii are just of the few of the states with aggressive programs to replace oil imports with homegrown fuels."