We have expanded the list of climate policies we assess company engagement with to incorporate land-use related policy, referring to legislative or regulatory measures to enhance and protect ecosystems and land where carbon is being stored. Assessments under this category are currently underweighted in terms of their contribution to the overall company metrics. This weighting will be progressively increased over the next 6 months.
We adjusted the terminology used to describe the queries running down the left-hand side of our scoring matrix and added additional explanatory text to the info-boxes. This has no impact on the scores and methodology. It has been done following user feedback to improve clarity.
Climate Lobbying Overview: Advanced Energy United (AEU), formerly Advanced Energy Economy, is actively engaging on U.S. climate policies with positive positions. The group has engaged on federal and state policies, with a focus on transitioning the energy mix and developing ambitious regulations toward the expansion of renewable energy.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: AEU demonstrates positive top-line messaging on climate policy. The group has consistently advocated for ambitious government policy to respond to climate change: in a January 2021 briefing, AEU called for federal stimulus investments to achieve a zero-emissions economy by 2050, and in a March 2022 press statement then-CEO Nat Kreamer urged Congress “to pass President Biden’s clean energy agenda without delay.” As reported by Utility Dive in January 2021, the group appeared to support the US re-entry into the Paris Agreement.
Engagement with Climate-Related Policy: AEU engages with positive positions on a wide array of climate-related policies at all levels of government. At the federal level, AEU submitted November 2022 comments to the Internal Revenue Service in support of the Inflation Reduction Act’s energy efficiency incentives. The group also strongly supported the Build Back Better Act, including in a June 2022 letter which advocated to federal policymakers to pass the bill’s clean energy tax credits. Previously in January 2022, the group filed a legal brief on West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that advocated for the Supreme Court to uphold the authority of the EPA to regulate GHG emissions.
AEU has also supported climate proposals at the state level. The group strongly supported energy efficiency legislation, submitting May 2022 testimony in support of Colorado House Bill 22-1362 and New York Senate Bill 9405. AEU also pushed for more ambitious renewable energy policy: in December 2022, the group organized a sign-on letter to the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission advocating for utilities Duke and AES to offer a green tariff program in the state; previously, in March 2022, AEU signed a joint letter to California policymakers that advocated for more funding toward distributed energy generation and community solar in the state budget. In Virginia, following Governor Youngkin’s push to withdraw from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, AEU advocated in March 2022 for the state to remain in the emissions trading program.
Positioning on Energy Transition: AEU takes a positive position on the energy transition and supports specific federal and state measures toward decarbonizing the economy. Former CEO Kreamer has advocated for more ambitious federal climate policy, publishing several press statements in August 2022 that urged Congress to pass the clean energy investments in the Inflation Reduction Act. Previously, in April 2022, Kreamer wrote a blog post that called for a rapid phase-out of fossil fuels in response to the crisis in Ukraine and pushed President Biden to invoke the Defense Production Act toward increasing electric heat pump production. In August 2021, when President Biden announced his executive order for half of all new vehicles sold in 2030 to be zero-emission, AEU published a press release calling for a more ambitious target.
AEU has positively engaged on state-level proposals to transition the energy mix, including transport electrification proposals. In July 2022 comments to the California Air Resources Board on the Advanced Clean Cars II Regulation stated strong support for the adoption of the policy and opposed specific flexibilities that may weaken the stringency of the rule. In July 2022 comments to the New York Climate Action Council, the group advocated for policymakers to adopt the Advanced Clean Fleets proposal in the final climate plan. In April 2022, AEU submitted testimony that argued against Colorado policymakers’ decision to delay adoption of the Advanced Clean Trucks rule and advocated for state agencies to initiate the rulemaking process. In California, the group signed a joint letter to state policymakers in March 2022 that supported the medium- and heavy-duty fleet electrification provisions in the draft state budget.