In Senate Banking hearing, Senator Warnock stressed the importance of creating a sustainable economy and greener transportation in questions to the hearing witnesses
Senator Warnock also highlighted his efforts to help facilitate a settlement that will help save more than 2,600 clean energy jobs at Commerce, GA electric battery plant
Senator Warnock: “The smart thing to do for our environment is also good public policy in terms of workers and the economy. Those things are not mutually exclusive.
Senator Warnock: “I’m proud that one of the innovators helping us to address this [air pollution] problem is Georgia’s own Blue Bird Corporation, down in Fort Valley, Georgia. They’re already leading the way to replace older diesel buses.”
ICYMI: Senator Warnock introduces legislation to make school commutes healthier for kids across the country – MORE HERE
ICYMI: Georgia Senators fight to keep clean energy jobs in the Peach State with SK Innovation settlement – MORE HERE
***WATCH FULL VIDEO OF SENATOR WARNOCK’S REMARKS HERE***
Washington, D.C. – Today, during a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing regarding the importance of growing more clean energy economic opportunities across the country, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) stressed the importance of prioritizing sustainability approaches in federal infrastructure in order to create and support clean energy jobs. During the hearing Senator Warnock questioned witness Ernest Moniz, President & CEO of Energy Futures Initiative and former U.S. Secretary of Energy, on the need to bolster the nation’s electric vehicle infrastructure to help reduce carbon emissions and reduce the nation’s reliance on ecologically-harmful fossil fuels. Senator Warnock also highlighted his recent work to help save over 2,600 clean-energy jobs at the SK Innovation electric battery plant in Commerce, Georgia after working with the companies involved to help them settle a legal dispute and keep the Commerce plant online.
“President Biden has made greening our transportation infrastructure a top priority to help meet his clean energy economy goals…[that] also includes investments in clean, electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging infrastructure. We have a massive $2.6 billion electric vehicle battery plant under construction in the City of Commerce, Georgia, which would produce car batteries to help increase electric vehicles, reduce carbon emissions, and fight climate change. On top of that, this plan would keep Georgia on the cutting edge of a clean energy economy and create at least 2,600 clean energy jobs that’s a win for my state,” Senator Warnock posed to Secretary Moniz, before asking the witness to discuss the importance of clean electric vehicle infrastructure in reducing carbon emissions and reducing the nation’s fossil fuel reliance.
“I was grateful to play a role in helping these companies to recognize that they needed to come to a resolution, saving a lot of jobs in Georgia and what this demonstrates, and will demonstrate over time is, is that the smart thing to do for our environment is also good public policy in terms of workers and the economy. Those things are not mutually exclusive,” Senator Warnock added.
Senator Warnock’s questioning reflects his commitment to providing safer, more sustainable transportation and infrastructure that will promote public health and help keep Georgia’s economy moving forward. On Wednesday, Senator Warnock introduced the Clean Commute for Kids Act, along with U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), that would provide $25 billion over the next 10 years to replace diesel buses with zero emission school buses, helping support healthier commutes for millions of children across the country and investing in innovations that will help create green jobs at Georgia companies like Fort Valley’s Blue Bird Corporation. To that end, during the hearing Senator Warnock also questioned Zoe Lipman, Director ofManufacturing and Advanced Transportation at the BlueGreen Alliance, a worker and environmental sustainability advocacy organization, on the importance of greening transportation assets like school buses to help protect the environment and public health.
“We need sustainable approaches to our ecology, and our economy and those things are actually connected, and increasingly so, when our schools fully reopen and kids return to in-person instruction, nearly 25 million American children will be exposed to harmful air pollution each day as they travel to school on buses that by and large run-on diesel fuel,” Senator Warnock said. “Children in Georgia and across America should be able to get to and from school each day without breathing polluted air. I’m proud that one of the innovators helping us to address this problem is George’s own Blue Bird Corporation, down in Fort Valley, Georgia. They’re already leading the way to replace older diesel buses. The kinds you and I went to school on certainly I did, with cleaner zero emission electric buses, because they see greening our school bus fleet as an urgent environmental concern and an economic priority.”
See full video of Senator Warnock’s questioning HERE.
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