Rogers /2 Senator Uy

S.W._____

A BILL
To provide funding for federal research and development on solar energy
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE
This act may be cited as the Solar Act of 2015.
SECTION 2. FINDINGS
Congress hereby finds and declares that,
A) Current oil supplies in all nations combined would last the world for only about 41 years
B) As of July 2014, Oil Change International estimates U.S. fossil fuel subsidies at 37.5 billion dollars annually
C) Compared with renewables, nuclear and fossil fuel technologies enjoy a considerable advantage in government
subsidies for research and development
D) Between one-quarter and one-half of interstate wars since 1973 have been connected to one or more oil related
causal mechanisms
E) By 2050, one-third of the worlds energy will come from solar, wind, and other renewable sources
F) A 1.5 Kilowatt PV system will keep more than 110,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, the chief greenhouse gas, out of
the atmosphere over the next 25 years
G) The United States gets 84 percent of its total energy from oil, coal, and natural gas, all of which are fossil fuels
that harm the environment
H) Competition over the control of valuable oil supplies and pipeline routes has emerged as a particularly acute
source of conflict in the 21st Century
I) The Middle East has the worlds largest deposits of oil (55 percent of the worlds reserves) in the easily extracted
form; Middle Eastern oil continues to be necessary to the United States.
J) Fossil fuel companies receive greater government support, on the order of ten times as those going to renewables
K) Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, carbon dioxide concentration has increased nearly thirty percent
L) The U.S. is becoming increasingly dependent on other countries for oil. Some of these countries include: Iran,
Russia, Mexico and, Canada.
M) Around one-third of the oil we use is imported, costing our economy roughly $192 billion annually.
N) In the first nine months of 2013, BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, and Shell earned a combined 71
billion dollars in profits.
O) The United States consumes more energy from petroleum than any other source. In 2013, total U.S. petroleum
consumption was 18.9 million barrels per day, or 36 percent of all the energy we consumed.
P) The combustion of fossil fuels such as gasoline and diesel to transport people and goods is the second largest
source of CO2 emissions, accounting for about 31 percent of total U.S. CO2 emissions and 26 percent of total U.S
Q) PV (Photovoltaic) panels on just 0.6 percent of the nations total land area could supply enough electricity to
power the entire United States
R) A study from NASA states that scientists have high confidence that global temperatures will continue to rise for
decades to come, largely due to greenhouse gasses produced by human activities
S) Governments worldwide still subsidize the fossil fuel industry with over 600 billion dollars, giving this aging
industry five times the subsidy that went to renewables
SECTION 3. STATUTORY LANGUAGE
A) 85 percent of the government subsidies for oil industries shall henceforth be used to subsidize the research and
development of solar energy. The subsidies will be used to increase efficiency, lower the cost, and improve solar
energy.
B) The United States Department of Energy shall be responsible for ensuring that 85 percent (Currently $31.88
Billion) of the oil subsidies shall be used solely for the research and the development of the solar industry.
C) The Solar Act of 2015 shall go into effect on January 1, 2017. There is no expiration date for this bill.