September 3, 2015 | By RGR Marketing Blog

POTUS Calls Out Billionaire Brothers at Vegas Conference

On August 24th, a distinguished speaker took the National Clean Energy Summit’s stage at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. That speaker was none other than president Barack Obama.

Obama had plenty to say to critics of his energy policies, which wasn’t surprising. But the fact that he called out billionaire brothers David and Charles Koch by name did come as a bit of a shock to some attendees.

In his bold chastisement, Obama said, “When you start seeing massive lobbying efforts backed by fossil fuel interests, or conservative think tanks, or the Koch brothers pushing for new laws to roll back renewable energy standards, or to prevent new clean energy businesses from succeeding, that's a problem, that's not the American way. That's not progress. That's not innovation. That's rent seeking. That's standing in the way of progress."

Obama went on to criticize the hypocrisy of the Koch brothers and others of their ilk, saying, “Now, it’s one thing if you’re consistent in being free market. It’s another thing when you’re free market until it’s solar that’s working and people want to buy and suddenly you’re not for it any more.”

So what have the Koch brothers done to spur the president to publicly take them to task?

Why Make Examples of the Koch Brothers?

It seems that solar energy’s meteoric adoption rates haven’t gone unnoticed by energy’s old guard and its powerful allies. As a recent L.A. Times article put it, solar is “…big enough to have enemies.”

Traditional utilities and their investors are understandably concerned about solar energy’s disruptive potential, so much so that they’ve spearheaded efforts to roll back net metering laws and repeal green energy mandates. They’ve even been so bold as to demand a share of the power generated by renewables, citing infrastructure costs as justification.

These initiatives have come from a wide array of conservative enclaves, but one of the most vocal has been Americans for Prosperity, an advocacy group backed by… you guessed it: David and Charles Koch. The Koch Brothers are among the most vocal, and best-funded enemies of solar energy.

What Do the Koch Brothers Have Against Solar?

For their part, the Koch Brothers and their allies ostensibly take issue not with solar, but with the manner in which energy policy has been changed to favor solar growth.

And on that front, they’re partially correct. Solar’s current renaissance would likely not have taken shape so quickly had it not been for the federal initiatives such as the Renewable Energy Tax Credit, which provides solar adopters with a rebate of 30% on qualified solar expenditures.

Of course, solar backers are quick to point out that there’s more at stake than corporate profits. The scientific community has issued repeated warnings that our continued reliance on fossil fuels is bringing us ever closer to environmental catastrophe. When viewed in that light, spurring growth in the renewable energy sector seems like the only responsible thing to do.

Dark Clouds on Solar’s Horizon?

Solar has been growing by leaps and bounds, but if tax incentives and renewable portfolio standards were to end tomorrow, would it have enough momentum to continue?

Many experts believe it would. The loss of those incentives would certainly be a blow to the solar industry, but economies of scale have already helped solar reach cost parity in many markets. In fact, a great number of consumers and businesses would still save money by going solar, even without tax rebates.

Further, new battery technology such as Tesla’s Powerwall has the potential to eliminate energy consumers’ reliance on utilities entirely. So do the brothers Koch and their allies have reason to be worried? Absolutely. Can they stop solar’s staggering growth? Not likely.

If you're in the solar installation business and your marketing plan could use a little boost, get in touch with RGR Marketing today: we've got the highest quality, exclusive solar leads for sale, anywhere.

[Photo Via: cdnph]

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