Alternative-energy push gets bipartisan support

Ohio politicians from both sides of the aisle claim to champion the state's push toward using alternative energy as an economic development tool.

At the state level, Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland has stepped up his emphasis on solar and other renewable energies as two of the most exciting prospects for reversing what feels like a decades-long recession in Ohio.

While Mr. Strickland believes his approach will result in thousands of solar jobs for Ohioans, as early as this year, Republican gubernatorial candidate John Kasich criticizes the governor over the disappearance of some 300,000 jobs during Mr. Strickland's tenure.

Mr. Strickland said some of his solar policy adjustments would've created more jobs sooner had Republicans not opposed legislation that would establish a market for solar products.

An example is Senate Bill 221, the energy measure that passed in 2008 that required Ohio utilities to use renewable sources for at least 12.5 percent of their electrical energy output by 2025.

"We were going to establish a very credible renewable and advanced energy standard for Ohio, and I can tell you when I started talking with the leadership on the other side of the aisle about that, they said we will never support such a mandate on industry," Mr. Strickland said. "But, after a year or more, we finally got it done, and we have a standard now that I think positions Ohio well."

Republicans bristle at the suggestion that they opposed the bill.

"We passed Senate Bill 221 a couple years ago that moved advanced alternative energy further down the road in Ohio, and that was a very bipartisan effort to do so," state Rep. Randy Gardner (R., Bowling Green) said. "The strongest champion on SB 221 I think was at the time [House] Speaker Jon Husted."

Mr. Husted, now a state senator from Kettering, a Dayton suburb, was the Republican speaker until Democrats gained control of the House in 2008.

Mr. Gardner said both parties support incentives for the solar and wind industries based on the calculation that it will pay off with investment and jobs in Ohio.

"The question you balance is, 'Is the long-term benefit when the cost will likely come down worthwhile for the state to invest?'•" Mr. Gardner said. "Most legislators on both sides of the aisle have said generally, 'Yes, it is.'•"

State Sen. Mark Wagoner (R., Ottawa Hills) cites Republican support for the Third Frontier economic development program that includes about $150 million for alternative energy projects ranging from "clean" coal to solar projects.

He pointed to a bill sponsored by Sen. Chris Widener (R., Springfield) that establishes a flat fee for renewable energy generation facilities in Ohio as an alternative to the tangible personal property tax. The American Wind Energy Association says Ohio's tax rate on renewable energy technologies is up to eight times higher than that in neighboring states.

Mr. Wagoner said Mr. Widener's bill is likely to have bipartisan support.

"If other states are expanding more rapidly than we are, then we're falling behind," Mr. Wagoner said. "I think we've got tremendous potential."

Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, who resigned as Ohio director of development last year to run for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican George Voinovich, said pushing Ohio as a solar manufacturing center has bipartisan backing.

"When it comes to moving to a clean-energy economy, this is not and should not be a partisan issue," Mr. Fisher, a Democrat, said. "The only way we're going to chart a new path for Ohio is to take advantage of our inherent strengths and use them to move faster than anyone else to a clean-energy economy."

But he said Ohio needs two U.S. senators who are "champions for clean energy and make it a top priority."

Rob Portman, the Republican candidate for the same seat, said he supports incentives for the solar industry and cited his visits to solar manufacturers in Ohio as evidence of his interest.

"Incentives are working to move this industry forward in Ohio, and if elected, I will be looking for ways to improve the partnership with government and the private sector to encourage market-based growth," Mr. Portman said in a written statement.

Democrat Keith Wilkowski based his campaign for mayor of Toledo last year on the economic promise of alternative energy but lost the election to former Fire Chief Mike Bell, an independent who barely mentioned the subject. "I don't read the election results as a rejection of those ideas at all," Mr. Wilkowski said.

He has lost none of his enthusiasm for clean technology and now heads the alternative energy section of his new employer, law firm Marshall & Melhorn LLC.

"The dollars are, and go where, the policy is. That's why there is no doubt that politics plays a role in this," Mr. Wilkowski said.

He emphasized in his campaign that Toledo should be a model for alternative energy, such as by establishing a solar energy array atop one of the abandoned landfills.

Contact Tom Troy at:

tomtroy@theblade.com

or 419-724-6058.