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I have a newly found appreciation of Rick Perry. I didn't realize that he was so instrumental in bringing wind energy to the state of Texas.
https://www.npr.org/2017/03/08/518988840/wind-energy-takes-flight-in-the-heart-of-texas-oil-country
Texas is by far the No. 1 producer of wind energy in the United States; it produces more wind energy than the next three states combined.
And Rick Perry was a big part of this.
But just because West Texas towns like Sweetwater had the potential to produce a lot of wind energy didn't mean that energy had anywhere to go. That changed when Gov. Perry signed into law a 2005 bill to build transmission lines connecting the windy plains to population centers like Houston, Austin, Dallas and San Antonio. And Perry made every Texas citizen pay for it in their energy bills.
So far, this Administration has not rolled back the Obama-originated and extended renewable energy tax rebates (they start to get phased out in 2020).
But, Root adds, "I don't think anyone would call Rick Perry an environmentalist, including Rick Perry. ... But the guy knows how to sniff out a dollar. Here's a guy from West Texas who saw that you can make money off of the wind blowing. Like, that's a no brainer."
Of course, this Texas wind revolution was begun before the Tea Party revolution, when it was easier for Republicans to buck strict conservative principles on a case-by-case basis. So Perry, as U.S. energy secretary, faces challenges at the national level that will make it much harder for him to expand what he did in Texas.
https://www.npr.org/2017/03/08/518988840/wind-energy-takes-flight-in-the-heart-of-texas-oil-country
Texas is by far the No. 1 producer of wind energy in the United States; it produces more wind energy than the next three states combined.
And Rick Perry was a big part of this.
But just because West Texas towns like Sweetwater had the potential to produce a lot of wind energy didn't mean that energy had anywhere to go. That changed when Gov. Perry signed into law a 2005 bill to build transmission lines connecting the windy plains to population centers like Houston, Austin, Dallas and San Antonio. And Perry made every Texas citizen pay for it in their energy bills.
So far, this Administration has not rolled back the Obama-originated and extended renewable energy tax rebates (they start to get phased out in 2020).
But, Root adds, "I don't think anyone would call Rick Perry an environmentalist, including Rick Perry. ... But the guy knows how to sniff out a dollar. Here's a guy from West Texas who saw that you can make money off of the wind blowing. Like, that's a no brainer."
Of course, this Texas wind revolution was begun before the Tea Party revolution, when it was easier for Republicans to buck strict conservative principles on a case-by-case basis. So Perry, as U.S. energy secretary, faces challenges at the national level that will make it much harder for him to expand what he did in Texas.