Winds of Change: Ohio Legislature Passes Renewable Energy Tax Reform

It’s about time we find ways to utilize renewable energy sources in the U.S. while creating the jobs that go with them. Ohio is proposing seven new wind farms in their quest for renewable energy according to Wind and Solar Jobs for Ohio, a grassroots coalition in Ohio.

Passing the bill, known as Sub Senate Bill 232, was a bipartisan effort. Both parties put aside their differences to bring Ohio's tax structure for wind development in line those of surrounding states. With this vote, Ohio lawmakers have positioned the state to create thousands of Ohio manufacturing, construction, operations and maintenance jobs in the wind industry and protected the existing manufacturing jobs resulting from new wind turbine orders.

This renewable energy tax reform strengthened the renewable market and secured millions of dollars in new tax revenue for local communities in Ohio.

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Ford to Move Hybrid and Electric-Car Jobs to Michigan

Great news for Michigan! Recently, Ford Motor Company has announced that they are investing $135 million to design, engineer and produce key components for its next-generation hybrid-electric vehicles in Michigan. These vehicles will go into production in 2012. Ford states that Michigan will become its “center of excellence for vehicle electrification” and will add 170 combined green technology jobs at the Rawsonville and Van Dyke Transmission plants, as well as 50 electric vehicle engineer jobs. In an article posted on the Ford website, Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm stated, “Today’s announcement by Ford represents another step forward in moving Michigan from the Rust Belt to the Green Belt by investing in green technology and creating green jobs.”

Ford’s Van Dyke Transmission plant will produce a new electric-drive trans-axle for the new hybrids; this will move work to Michigan that is currently performed by a supplier in Japan. Ford’s Rawsonville Plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan will begin to assemble the battery packs in 2012—moving work to Michigan that is currently performed in Mexico.

The new hybrids are part of Ford’s plan to launch five electric vehicle models in the United States by 2012 and in Europe by 2013. I will be looking forward to the impact on our environment as well as our economy in the coming years.

Read the full article here.