Growth in clean energy jobs spurred by incentives congressional GOP opposes, says advocacy group • Kentucky Lantern

Kentucky for the second straight year had the nation’s second fastest growth in clean energy jobs, though the state still lags in the actual number of such jobs, according to an annual report that focuses on economic development and energy.

The report from E2, which describes itself as a nonpartisan business group that advocates “for smart policies that are good for the economy and good for the environment,” found Kentucky’s 6.5% increase in clean energy jobs tied with Texas and was behind only Alabama. Nationwide clean energy employment grew 4.5% and added nearly 150,000 jobs, with the South outpacing the rest of the country.

The group’s definition of clean energy employment is broad, including jobs created through renewable energy industries, modernizing the electric grid and improving home and business energy efficiency. The definition of clean energy jobs also includes jobs generated through clean vehicles, ranging from hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, hybrid plug-in vehicles to fully electric vehicles (EVs). Growth in clean vehicle jobs made up approximately 45% of Kentucky’s overall clean energy job growth of 2,389 jobs added last year. 

Despite the growth in clean energy jobs, Kentucky had significantly fewer of them overall at the beginning of this year than all of its neighbors except West Virginia. The per capita rate of clean energy jobs is also lower in Kentucky than surrounding states except West Virginia. 

• Kentucky: 39,639 clean energy jobs and 19.8 clean jobs per capita.
• Illinois: 129,282 clean energy jobs and 21.4 clean energy jobs per capita.
• Indiana: 90,155 clean energy jobs and 28.3 clean energy jobs per capita.
• Ohio: 119,575 clean energy jobs and 21.7 clean energy jobs per capita.
• Missouri: 58,836 clean energy jobs and 20.2 clean energy jobs per capita.
• Tennessee: 86,656 clean energy jobs and 26.4 clean energy jobs per capita.
• Virginia: 99,774 clean energy jobs and 24.4 clean energy jobs per capita.
• West Virginia: 10,394 clean energy jobs and 15 clean energy jobs per capita.

The report found that 1 in 16 new jobs nationwide, or 6.4%, were in clean energy. In Kentucky, 6.7% of new jobs were in clean energy. Nearly half of the country’s approximately 3.4 million clean energy jobs came from construction, according to the E2 report.

Mike Proctor, the publicity chair for the EV advocacy group Evolve KY, pointed to EV manufacturing announcements in Kentucky — such as the massive BlueOval SK EV battery factories under construction in Glendale and a potential EV-focused plant in Shelby County. Gov. Andy Beshear has said the Ford project requires almost 2,600 construction workers. Proctor said the large projects will also have an economic multiplier effect, creating jobs in other industries beyond the plants, from companies that support the EV supply chain to restaurants that feed the workers.

“Every one of those things are going to have, you know, a support structure to provide parts and what not. I’m sure a number of those vendors will be Kentucky based as well,” Proctor said. “Even a hot dog stand outside the Glendale plant, I’m sure they’re doing a bang-up business for lunch.” 

Most of Kentucky’s clean energy jobs come from work in vehicles and energy efficiency, including efficient HVAC systems,  lighting and appliances.

E2, which has been tracking clean energy jobs since 2015, also ranked Kentucky as the second fastest growing state for clean energy employment in its 2023 report. 

E2 Executive Director Bob Keefe in a statement credited Congress’  passage of the “game-changing” Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and its clean energy incentives for an increase last year of almost 150,000 clean energy jobs nationwide — up 4.5% from the year before.

“But we’re just getting started,” Keefe said in his statement. “The biggest threats to this unprecedented progress are misguided efforts to repeal or rollback parts of the IRA, despite the law’s clear benefits both to American workers and the communities where they live.”

No Republican on Capitol Hill voted for the passage of the IRA in 2022, decrying the hundreds of billions of dollars in subsidies for electric vehicles and renewable energy as something that could drive up prices and warp markets. Republicans may soon decide whether to repeal some parts of the law. E2 in a separate report published in August found nearly 60% of announced clean vehicle and clean energy projects since the passage of the IRA have been in Republican-represented congressional districts, representing 85% of total investment tracked by the group. 

Andy McDonald, a Frankfort-based clean energy advocate and energy policy analyst, told the Lantern that at least two renewable energy projects in Franklin County can be attributed to incentives provided through the IRA: The county extension office added solar panels and a battery system.  Frankfort’s municipal utility is considering expanding its community solar installation. 

“The municipal utility provides electricity to local people, and so reducing their cost of electricity with clean energy should produce less pressure on rates for all of their customers,” McDonald said.