Economic Message of the Week: Sen. Tim Johnson Urges Energy Legislation for New Job Opportunities

Senator Tim Johnson (D-SD) registered his support for comprehensive clean energy legislation, emphasizing the benefits of a strengthened wind energy infrastructure both nationally and at a state level.

In a statement circulated to regional news outlets and organizations, Sen. Johnson decried South Dakota’s lagging wind energy sector and voiced his support for an energy bill currently being considered in the Senate, which he said would bolster the industry.

“Soon the Senate will consider climate change legislation that could finally help South Dakota to live up to its wind generating potential and capture the benefits of a cash crop that is just blowing across our landscape,” Sen. Johnson said.

Stressing the opportunity for America to become a “global leader” in clean energy, Sen. Johnson went on to highlight the broad economic opportunities afforded by a clean energy bill and criticize those who seek to defeat it with exaggerated cost estimates: “These scare tactics just present a status quo approach that leaves us all vulnerable to oil spikes in a global market and high gas prices that crush family budgets like we saw last summer.”