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The debt crisis must be resolved without gutting Medicare or Social Security, North Coast Reps. Mike Thompson and Lynn Woolsey said Tuesday.
Thompson, D-St. Helena, said he is “not afraid to cut spending where it's deserved” and noted that he has voted to cut spending by more than $100 billion this year. But he said in a written statement that he is “not willing to vote to balance the budget on the backs of seniors, the poor or the middle class.”
The previous speaker was eloquent in his discussion about the bald eagle. Let's think about what would have happened had this measure been law 44 years ago. The American bald eagle, our national bird and symbol, would be gone.
A government program that helped homeowners finance and install green upgrades before a technical roadblock stalled it last year may be resuscitated by Congress.
Rep. Mike Thompson joined with two House Republicans Wednesday in introducing legislation to protect the government-financed home and business energy retrofit programs that have run afoul of federal housing regulators.
Sonoma County has been a pioneer among the dozens of local and state governments offering Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE programs. Since its inception more than two year ago, the county program has handed out about $48 million in retrofit financing, which property owners repay through their property tax bills.
Benjamin Franklin established the nation's first special assessment district when he created the Union Fire Company of Philadelphia, a volunteer fire department. Today there are more than 37,000 special districts in the United States. Local governments use them to pay for everything from sewer systems to sidewalks to mosquito abatement â€" all in response to important community concerns.
It doesn't exactly mark the Age of Aquarius, but amid the partisan rancor paralyzing Washington, two Republicans and a Democrat have joined forces to introduce legislation to revive a popular residential solar financing program scuttled by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac last year.
Rep. Mike Thompson and a pair of Republicans are trying revive a way for property owners to pay for projects like installing solar panels and energy-saving windows as a surcharge on their property tax.
Such property-assessed clean energy, or PACE, programs looked to be moving forward in Davis and across the country. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac derailed them last year by saying they would not accept loans that included PACE liens.
Three members of Congress -- two Republicans and one Democrat -- joined for a press conference on Wednesday to promote The Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program and urge the rest of Congress to join them.
The bipartisan group of members included Reps. Mike Thompson (D-St.Helena), Nan Hayworth (R-N.Y.), and Dan Lungren (R-Calif.) who introduced the PACE Protection Act of 2011. The PACE program is currently available in 28 states.
Today a bipartisan group of members - Reps. Mike Thompson (D-CA), Nan Hayworth, M.D. (R-NY), and Dan Lungren (R-CA) - introduced the PACE Protection Act of 2011. The Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program - currently available in 27 states and the District of Columbia - allows property owners to finance energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for their homes and commercial buildings - without any government subsidies or taxes. More important, it will means lower utility bills for property owners and job creation in the hard hit construction industry.
“We are pleased that the Obama Administration is committed to addressing the growing issue of electronics waste, which now represents the fastest growing waste stream in the United States.