Elsewhere, states have been slower to embrace the concept, though New Jersey is likely to debate the issue later this year when restructuring legislation is filed. It's not the top item. At the federal level, however, the Clinton Administration's draft legislation for deregulation includes a 5.5-percent RPS by 2010. S. 687 calls for a 10 percent RPS in 2010. That's combined with emissions caps on carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide.
Politicians know they have support from a substantial portion of the public on green energy.
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory concluded in a review of about 20 years of opinion polls that 56 to 80 percent of Americans are willing to pay more for renewable energy. According to the EIA's 1998 Annual Energy Outlook , under current conditions, the total renewable share of U.S. generation, including hydropower, will likely drop from 12.5 percent in 1996 to 9.2 percent in 2020. Excluding hydropower, the EIA expects electricity generation from renewable resources to supply just 2.5 percent of the country's grid-connected energy supply in 2020. The program's trading aspect, which allows trading or banking of emissions allowances in order to achieve the lowest cost of compliance, has produced higher cost savings than expected. In addition to lowering compliance costs, the credits would provide revenue for new renewable facilities.