"Comparison: Clinton, Obama Green Jobs Plans" Green Car Advisor

Comparison: Clinton, Obama Green Jobs Plans

As the race for the Democratic Presidential nomination turns from sprint to enduro, Sen. Hillary Clinton on Monday outlined a "green jobs" plan that includes environmental designs for the auto industry and some details of her overall green strategy not previously made public. Her chief rival, Sen. Barack Obama, has had a plan of his own for some time.

We asked Green Car Advisor contributor Scott Doggett to parse the two plans and give us a side-by-side comparison.

OVERVIEW
Both plans call for $150 billion in investment over 10 years, to be raised by a cap-and-trade auction system for polluters (neither politician embraces a carbon tax). The plans are remarkable not so much for their differences as for their similarities.

CLEAN-ENERGY FUND
Both candidates say they would use one third of their green investment dollars to create $50 billion venture capital funds that would invest in research, development and deployment of renewable and alternative energies.

FUEL ECONOMY
Both candidates propose raising the federal corporate average fuel economy standard to 40 miles per gallon by 2020, instead of the 35 miles per gallon mandated in the 2007 energy bill. Clinton has also proposed further raising the mandate to 55 mpg by 2030.

PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
Obama says he would commit funds to accelerate the commercialization of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, but doesn't provide a sum. Clinton says she would reduce the time it takes to bring PHEVs to market by investing $2 billion in research and development to reduce the cost and increase the longevity of batteries, by offering consumers tax credits of up to $10,000 for buying a PHEV, and by adding 100,000 plug-ins to the federal fleet by 2015.

BIOFUELS
Obama says he would invest federal resources into developing the most promising biofuel technologies with the goal of getting the first 2 billion gallons of cellulosic ethanol into the system by 2013. He says he would also create incentives for communities to invest in local biofuels refineries, and says he would establish a national low-carbon-fuel standard to speed introduction of low-carbon, non-petroleum fuels.

Clinton last year voted against ethanol because, she said, subsidizing ethanol in the middle of the country would raise the fuel's price in New York. She says she now supports ethanol because there is a broader base for ethanol production in New York, making transportation cost no longer a factor. She claims she's a big supporter of "all forms of ethanol, research for cellulosic ethanol, biodiesel."

AUTO PLANTS
Clinton says she would authorize $20 billion in low-interest bonds in order to provide immediate help to retool the oldest U.S. auto plants so they can remain competitive. Obama says he would provide retooling tax credits and loan guarantees for domestic auto plants and parts manufacturers for the same reason. He has not placed upper or lower limits on the funding.

GREEN-COLLAR JOBS
Clinton says she would create a green-collar jobs training program to provide workers with the skills they'd need for jobs such as installing solar panels, building hybrid transmissions, and weatherizing public buildings. The program "would target at-risk youth, veterans, displaced workers, and would teach them skills to install and maintain energy efficiency and renewable energy technology."

Obama says he would use an undisclosed sum: to invest in job training to help workers adapt to clean technology development and production; to create "an energy-focused green-jobs corps to connect disconnected and disadvantaged youth with job skills for a high-growth industry"; and to double science and research funding for clean energy projects, including those that make use of biomass, solar and wind resources.

GREEN BUILDINGS
Clinton says she will dedicate $1 billion annually to states to enable them to make grants or low-interest loans to improve energy efficiency in public buildings, such as schools, police stations, firehouses and offices. Buildings account for 40 percent of greenhouse gas emissions nationwide "and present a tremendous opportunity for reducing emissions."

Obama says he would set a goal of making all new buildings carbon neutral -- that is, they would produce zero greenhouse gas emissions -- by 2030. He says he would also establish a national goal of improving new building efficiency by 50 percent and existing building efficiency by 25 percent over the next decade.