With federal funding of over $4.4 billion allocated to smart grid technologies in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, smart grid federal projects will go a long way in positively impacting Washington’s economy and workforce. A smarter electricity grid will allow consumers to monitor in real time the amount, price, and source of the electricity they consume so that they can make decisions about how best to use energy.

 

Although our nation’s electricity grid is vital to our economy and way of life, it uses outmoded technology which cannot record or communicate valuable information on conditions of supply, consumer loads, or system performance.  This means our grid is less reliable than it could be and requires greater generation resources than it should.  This challenge is going to become even more acute as demand for electricity in the U.S. is expected to grow 40 percent between now and 2030. 

 

Unless we make our grid smarter, there is no way it will be able to handle the millions of plug-in electric vehicles that we are hoping consumers will start putting in their driveways to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and lessen demand and gas prices at the pump.  During a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing, I encouraged a wide-scale transition towards smart grid technologies to address some of these issues. With federal funding of over $4.4 billion allocated to smart grid technologies in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, smart grid federal projects will go a long way in positively impacting Washington’s economy and workforce. A smarter electricity grid will allow consumers to monitor in real time the amount, price, and source of the electricity they consume so that they can make decisions about how best to use energy, and we will finally transform the two-lane dirt road that is our grid now into the four lane superhighway we need it to be.

 

 

 

Last Friday, I announced that communities throughout Washington state are eligible to receive over $37.7 million in  American Reinvestment and Recovery Act 2009 funding allocations for state and local law enforcement and criminal justice assistance available through the Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program. This funding is important in helping Washington local governments fight crime to keep our streets safe. The program, which I have supported for years, will provide important resources to help retain police officers, enhance law enforcement capabilities, and ensure that we have the tools and equipment necessary to build safer communities, as well protecting Washington first responders from being laid off during these tough economic times.

 

 

Today, I announced that the IRS has unclaimed federal tax refunds totaling $39,414,000 for 35,600 Washingtonians who haven’t filed a federal income tax return for 2005.  In order to collect the money, a tax return for 2005 must be filed no later than April 15, 2009. Given these tough economic times, Washingtonians could use this money to help make ends meet. I encourage all Washingtonians who may not have filed a return in 2005 to check their records, and complete it by the April 15, 2009 deadline in order to receive their refund.

 

 

Today, during a Senate Commerce Committee hearing, I called on for a quick confirmation process to make former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk the next United States Trade Representative.  There is an urgent need to promote growth in our domestic economy. With nearly half of the global economy shifting to the Asia-Pacific regions,  we must  strengthen strong and vital partnerships  between the U.S and the largest economies in Asia – specifically China and South Korea. I am confident that Mr. Kirk will  work to expand commerce across the globe and strengthen  our country's  trading relationships in a  global community.

 

 

Today, I applauded President Obama’s move to lift restrictions on federal financing for embryonic stem cell research. One in ten Washingtonians could stand to benefit from stem cell research, and it is long past time for us to remove roadblocks to this life-saving research. I been a long-time proponent of removing restrictions and taking the commonsense steps necessary to encourage federal support of groundbreaking embryonic stem cell research, which holds the greatest promise for Americans living with ailments like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and spinal cord injuries. The federal government should not stand in the way of a cure for these ailments or in the way of hope for the millions who suffer from them, and today, thanks to President Obama’s reversal of these limits, hope has been restored and researchers will finally be free to learn from these cells.

 

________________________________________________________

To Contact Senator Cantwell, please visit http://cantwell.senate.gov