Americans for Prosperity plan: attack wind energy with myths

A recent memo from Americans for Prosperity reveals that the Koch brothers-funded group plans once again to attack wind energy based on misconceptions.

Their Groundhog Day campaign plan, which was posted online and widely commented on this week, lists blocking reauthorization of the renewable energy Production Tax Credit (PTC) as a holdover on their national network’s priorities.

This is nothing new for the group, which has previously run ads and tried to organize against the PTC without success. The tax credit was extended again as recently as December, and it has bipartisan support to keep driving private investment into U.S. wind farms and factories.

The myths the AFP plans to keep trying to spread are familiar, as well:

• The myth that wind “does not produce cheaper energy…and increases costs for consumers”: In reality the cost of wind energy has dropped in cost 58 percent in five years, and it saved Midwest consumers $1 billion in two days during last year’s Polar Vortex cold snap, for example.
• The myth that wind “threatens the reliability of the energy grid”: In reality, widespread wind turbines, whose output is highly predictable, improve the grid’s reliability versus other plants that can suddenly trip off. AWEA Senior Research Director Michael Goggin recently explained how this works.
• The myth that renewable energy tax credits are “corporate welfare”: Incentives have helped keep American energy prices low for the last century, but the AFP plan says nothing about attacking the rest of them. The Koch brothers may claim to oppose “all mandates and subsidies,” but in fact, they have previously supported them for the fossil fuel companies they’re invested in.

The Production Tax Credit is the primary federal incentive for wind energy to keep scaling up amidst many incentives for other energy sources. Extending it for the longest practical term will provide a stable, pro-growth business environment for a homegrown American industry that already supports 73,000 jobs.

It will benefit rural communities with millions in tax revenue to upgrade roads, schools, and emergency services.

It offers farmers and ranchers a drought-proof cash crop to help them stay on their land.

And it will make more energy from thin air, with technology invented in America, all at guaranteed low prices.

That’s real American prosperity for you!

Despite the continuing attacks from the Koch brothers and their front groups, three quarters of Americans support extending the incentive that keeps wind energy growing. If you’re one of them, please sign up for Power of Wind and make your voice heard.