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For Immediate Release
December 6, 2004
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White Named "Legislator of the Year" by Alternative Fuels Renewable Energies Council

Harrisburg – State Sen. Mary Jo White (R-21) has been named "Legislator of the Year" by an organization working to bring more renewable energy to the marketplace.

White, who chairs the Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, was honored by the Alternative Fuels Renewable Energies Council. The senator's committee approved two key pieces of legislation in 2004 that were recently signed into law.

Senate Bill 1030, co-sponsored by White, requires that within 15 years at least 18 percent of electric energy sold by a distribution company or generation supplier to a retail customer in Pennsylvania be generated from alternative energy sources. Such sources include solar, wind, waste coal and geothermal energy.

White also co-sponsored Senate Bill 255, which modernizes the Alternative Fuels Incentive Grant Program. The program provides grants and rebates to buyers to cover a portion of the cost difference between the price of an alternative fuel vehicle and a conventional vehicle.

"I'm honored to be a part of the effort to make Pennsylvania a leader in new energy technology and energy independence," said White.  "This year, the General Assembly set achievable standards in which a portion of electricity used in the Commonwealth will increasingly come from alternative energy sources, and it provided new incentives for producing and using alternative fuels. Those were encouraging developments."

The Alternative Fuels Renewable Energies Council was founded in 2002 to provide a forum where diverse industries could come together, share ideas and exchange energy commerce business.  Over the past two years, AFREC has evolved into an influential group that is recognized as a leader in Pennsylvania and the Mid Atlantic states.