Greetings!
With this newsletter, the Northeast-Midwest Institute aims to communicate with all those passionate about restoring older cities. Revitalizing older cities is a complex, difficult task that requires cooperation among a diverse group of stakeholders. This job requires re-thinking the way urban centers are planned, and re-building large parts of urban infrastructure so that overlooked, oft-forgotten older cities can be re-claimed as centers of socioeconomic innovation.
Check out the variety of topics covered in this issue of Re-Think, Re-Claim, Re-Build.
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Northeast-Midwest Institute Efforts to Channel DOE Loan Guarantees to Older Cities
J. Thomas Wolfe, Executive Director |
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The Institute has been working closely with the US Department of Energy regarding its recently authorized program of loan guarantees for financing the construction of renewable energy facilities. The program was created by the Obama Administration's "Stimulus Bill" - the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act - and would allow the Department to guarantee 80% of the debt necessary to build and operate wind, solar and other renewable energy production and supply chain manufacturing projects. It received $6 billion in appropriations to pay for credit subsidies associated with at least $48 billion of loan guarantees and represents a major initiative designed to spur the clean energy technology transition.
The Institute's major concern has been to help DOE reach out to development finance experts to examine ways to involve state, regional and local organizations early in the process to jump start small and medium-sized projects and to seek ways to assure that the older industrial cities of our region are not left behind because of institutional or bureaucratic obstacles, or their lack of development resources. One particular concern is that under current federal tax law, such loan guarantees cannot be used in the conjunction with the issuance of bonds that are exempt from federal taxes. Since most municipalities rely on tax-exempt financing instruments, this restriction could greatly impede the access of older cities to this opportunity.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee is currently considering S. 1462, American Clean Energy Leadership Act of 2009, which would enhance the Department's ability to provide credit support for the deployment of clean energy technologies. On September 14th, the Institute submitted a proposal to the Committee to use that legislative vehicle to amend the federal Internal Revenue Code to permit projects financed with tax-exempt bonds to benefit from the financial incentives for renewable energy and energy efficiency included in the DOE loan guarantee program.
The proposal is complex, but the gist of it is that Congress has already exempted a number of specific meritorious loan guarantees from the tax code's prohibition and that the recent deterioration of the municipal bond markets has increased the stress on state and local governments to the extent where easing their access to the credit market through loan guarantees makes sense from both an equity and a stimulus perspective.
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Older Industrial Communities Need Your Show of Support
Advocates Asked to Sign Letter of Support for Vacant Properties Legislation |
The Northeast-Midwest Institute, the National Vacant Properties Campaign, LISC, Smart Growth America and others are beginning to circulate a sign on letter aimed at garnering additional Congressional support for the Community Regeneration, Sustainability, and Innovation Act of 2009 (HR 923, S453). The legislation creates a pilot program that provides a funding stream to communities who lack the capacity necessary to deal with the negative consequences of long term, property vacancy and abandonment due to severe population loss. Along with empowering communities with the tools to offset new abandonment, the bill would assist local governments with demolishing, managing, and reclaiming existing vacant and abandoned properties through an array of effective strategies and tools. The collaborative strategic planning and innovative reuse principles called for in the program would authorize a community to employ a host of projects for re-imagining how to reuse vacant and abandoned structures and land. Request a copy of the letter and/or add your organization's name to the letter of support by clicking here.
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Summit Looks to Strengthen Rail Corridors in the Region
Meeting Discusses Role of PA in Bridging Northeast and Midwest Rail Plans |
The Northeast-Midwest Congressional Coalition, in coordination with the Northeast Midwest Institute and 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania, is convening a one day meeting to discuss the state of high-speed rail planning and construction in the Northeast and Midwest. Along with presentations from regional rail corridor stakeholders, Deputy Administrator of the Federal Rail Administration, Karen Rae and Congressman James Oberstar (D-MN), Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will address attendees about the future of rail federal rail policy and the importance of regional cooperation. The event, coined Rebuilding the Corridors of Prosperity: High-Speed Rail and Transportation Investment in the Northeast and Midwest, will highlight cooperation agreements forged by Northeast and Midwest states and determine the role Pennsylvania and other Mid-Atlantic states play in connecting these important rail corridors. The goal of the gathering is to stimulate interstate dialogue about rail plans, funding requests, etc. and instill the importance mega-regional coordination. The invitation only summit will take place on October 26, 2006 from 10AM- 3PM in the Rayburn House Office Building. For more information contact Greg Lewis at the Northeast-Midwest Institute. |
| Transportation Law Extension Passes with Caveat
1-Month Extension Could be Costly to States |
Congress approved a one-month extension of the transportation funding law, SAFETEA-LU, on the eve of its September 30 expiration. The House had passed a 3-month extension which rescinded $8.7 billion in contract authority for state highway dollars because of difficulty in funding as a result of pay-as-you-go rules. Senate leaders and transportation Sec. Ray LaHood had hoped for an 18-month extension of the current legislation but because of limited time had agreed to work for a 3 month version averting the rescission. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and ranking member James Inhofe (R-OH) had agreed to a compromise using TARP funds to fill the hole estimated at $300 million over the life of the extension. The compromise was rejected in the Senate by a few Senators hoping to use stimulus money rather than bailout money to pay for the changes. Congress now has one month to decide if it further lengthens the extension or proceeds with rewriting the transportation bill. For more information contact Fritz Ohrenschall, Post-Grad Intern, at the Northeast-Midwest Institute. |
CDFI Fund Opens FY 2010 Funding Round
$113 Million Available |
The U.S. Department of Treasury just announced its 2010 notice of funding availability for the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund which will allocate $113 million to CDFIs. The funds are intended to build capacity in these institutions in order to help serve low-income people and communities that lack access to capital. The application deadline is November 18th, 2009. The deadline for applying for CDFI certification is October 14th. Click here for more information. |
Sign-on Letter Supporting Energy Projects on Brownfields Amendment to Senate Climate Legislation
Groups Asked to Support Amendment Aimed at Emphasizing Brownfields for Sustainable Energy Projects |
In A number of organizations support the addition of two important provisions to the Senate's American Clean Energy Leadership Act of 2009 (ACELA) that would encourage the use of brownfields in the development of clean energy technology projects. The first would add the multiplier for renewable energy credits to utilities that site facilities on brownfield sites (currently the legislation provides multipliers for facilities sited on Indian land, for distributed generation, and for the production of energy from algae. The second would prioritize loan guarantees for clean energy projects that reuse abandoned or underutilized sites such as brownfields. Click here for the complete text of the letter and amendments. Please email Evans Paull to add your group to the sign on letter.
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Energy and Climate Legislation:
Weigh in on House and Senate Versions of Energy Bills |
In Congress attention is shifting back to climate change legislation, although the bill will most likely not be on the Senate floor for debate until early 2010. Energy provisions in the house passed bill are substantially different than the energy provisions contained in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources version already passed out of committee. The energy provisions will be added to the recently released climate change sections. To help decipher the differences between the House and Senate versions, the Alliance to Save Energy has prepared a side-by-side comparison of the energy provisions available at the following link. http://ase.org/uploaded_files/5748/aces_acela_side-by-side.pdf.
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Energy Department Sets High Efficiency Standards for Manufacturers
Midwest Manufacturing Facilities Demonstrate Leadership and Profit from Increased Efficiency |
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The Northeast-Midwest Institute continues to work with the Department of Energy (DOE), Industrial Technologies Program, state officials, and manufacturers to encourage the research, development and deployment of new energy efficient process technologies that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase competitiveness, and support new manufacturing opportunities in clean technologies. Manufacturers increasingly realize that in order to stay competitive, they need to enhance their energy efficiency. A number of programs at both the state and federal level can help them make the investments in improved efficiency or help them transition to the manufacturing of clean energy technologies.
At the recent Midwest Energy Efficiency Exchange held in Detroit September 9-10corporate executives from 10 companies signed a pledge to reduce their corporate energy intensity 25% or more in 10 years. These companies are among the first to commit to this goal and be recognized by DOE as a Save Energy Now LEADER. These companies are:
- 3M (St. Paul, MN)
- Briggs & Stratton (Wauwatosa, WI)
- Didion Milling (Johnson Creek, WI)
- The Dow Chemical Company (Midland, MI)
- Flambeau River Papers (Park Falls, WI)
- Manitowoc Grey Iron Foundry (Manitowoc, WI)
- Owens Corning (Toledo, OH)
- Quad/Graphics, Incorporated (Sussex, WI)
- Thilmany Papers (Kaukana, WI)
- ThyssenKrupp Waupaca (Waupaca, WI)
During the event, DOE's Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) Manager Douglas Kaempf and Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm presented Save Energy Now awards to 11 companies. These companies participated in no-cost Save Energy Now energy assessments and implemented key energy efficiency measures to reduce energy use and meet award criteria.
Save Energy Now Energy Champion Plants (Companies that saved more than 250,000 MMBtu total energy savings or more than 15% total energy savings).
- Benlee, Inc. (Romulus, MI)
- Brose (Chicago, IL)
- Flex-N-Gate Corporation - MasterGuard (Veedersburg, IN)
- The Minster Machine Company (Minster, OH)
- Nease Corporation (Harrison, OH)
Save Energy Now Energy Savers (Companies that saved more than 75,000 MMBtu total energy savings or more than 7.5% total energy savings).
- American Augers (West Salem, OH)
- Barnard Manufacturing (St. Johns, MI)
- Flex-N-Gate Corporation (Royal Oak, MI)
- Metal Technologies, Incorporated (Ravenna, MI)
- Mettler-Toledo International, Incorporated (Columbus, OH)
- Vantage Plastics (Standish, MI)
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NE-MW Institute staff also participated in a recent meeting with Dr. Henry Kelley, Principal Deputy to Cathy Zoi, Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, DOE, the Association for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO), and the Alliance for Materials Manufacturing Excellence (AMMEX) to discuss the need to increase the ITP budget to support R&D, technical assistance, and deployment of energy efficient technologies to manufacturers.
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We hope you have enjoyed this issue of our "Re-Think, Re-Claim, Re-Build Our Older Cities" Newsletter. It is our goal to provide you with the best policy analysis and up-to-date information about important legislation and programs aimed at helping our region.
Sincerely,
Greg Lewis
Greg Lewis, Policy Analyst
Northeast-Midwest Institute |
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| Images of Success! |
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Send us your personal photos and short description of successful redevelopment in your community. We would love to be able to spotlight successful brownfield reuse, blight removal, and derelict property rejuvenation efforts with policymakers in Washington. Your older city successes are the foundations of better federal policy!
email us your photos!
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