The Green Bank
A Bank For America's Future
America currently faces a dual economic and ecological crisis. The challenges of global competition and the looming climate crisis have taught us that the old 20th-century economic model built upon dirty industry cannot succeed moving forward; we must rebuild the nation's economic backbone with 21st-century technology and a clean energy infrastructure. Yet the federal government has remained stuck in the old ways of doing business - they have, to this point, woefully underfunded clean energy investment and forward-looking job creation measures.
Thankfully, there is a policy measure that can help fix both of these problems. Rep. Chris Van Hollen has proposed the creation of a Green Bank (H.R. 1698) that would sell government bonds and use the proceeds to provide loans for essential clean energy R&D, transmission and deployment and energy efficiency projects. These vital projects, especially those dealing with efficiency, are expected to be tremendous returns on investment and will create a substantial number of good-paying "green collar" jobs that cannot be outsourced. By investing in such initiatives that private sector banks seem unwilling to fund, we will be rebuilding America's economy in a way that also reduces our dependence on fossil fuels and lowers our overall carbon emissions.
The Green Bank concept is not only a great policy, it is also a political winner. Support for investment in renewable energy cuts across the political spectrum, and holds appeal across a wide swath of disparate constituencies. Support for energy efficiency is even more broadly based. Furthermore, Americans understand the need to create quality jobs in a weak economy, and want to see the government do more to help the little guy as opposed to wealthy, politically connected special interests. This measure will produce the results Americans are demanding, and do so in a way that enhances both short-term and long-term sustainable prosperity. Further, the political appeal of this bill could be increased substantially by adding a provision for a public awareness campaign, designed to encourage Americans to buy Green Bonds. Much like President Roosevelt's call to buy War Bonds, such a campaign, properly executed with the help of a popular president, could associate both Green Bonds and the Green Bank with patriotism and hope for a better future.