The Bangor Daily News operates independently and does not set news policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com. Michael Howard, an emeritus professor of philosophy at the University of Maine and an external associate of the Climate Change Institute, is a member of the Maine chapter of the national Scholars Strategy Network. His views are his own and do not represent any institution or organization. In the recent budget bill passed by the House of Representatives and now under consideration by the Senate, there are several objectionable cuts, including the elimination of clean energy tax credits. Senator Susan Collins, as the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, is in a key position to try to restore these tax credits, which are vital globally, nationally, and for the state of Maine. The climate emergency is upon us, with the average global rise in temperature approaching 1.5 degrees Celsius, and we are already experiencing catastrophic sea level rise, more and more severe hurricanes and storms, droughts, wildfires, and species extinction. In Maine, we face threats to fisheries from rapid warming of the Gulf of Maine. We need to take strong action to reduce our carbon emissions as rapidly as possible to sustain a habitable planet for ourselves and future generations. The Senate Appropriations Committee, led by Senator Collins, has a crucial role to play in restoring the clean energy tax credits. She has worked to preserve funding for the bipartisan infrastructure bill for the grid-scale battery storage project in Lincoln. As reported by the Bangor Daily News, the $147 million grant funded by that law will revitalize the shuttered Lincoln pulp mill by building an 8,500-megawatt-hour facility that will hold a battery to store excess electricity and discharge it if needed for 100 straight hours. Such battery storage is essential for maintaining grid stability as we phase out fossil fuels and transition to solar and wind power, which require backup power due to their intermittency. The Lincoln project, one of over 90 clean energy projects in Maine depending on the tax credits, is a prime example of this need. The following are some of the key clean energy projects in Maine that depend on the tax credits:

1. Solar, wind, and biomass projects totaling nearly $6 billion
2. Over 90 projects that are either not yet operational or not yet under construction
3. Estimated to create over 39,000 full-time equivalent jobs in transportation, manufacturing, power generation, building electrification and efficiency, and other sectors
4. Will likely be threatened by the elimination of the tax credits

Furthermore, the elimination of the tax credits will also impact consumer tax credits for:

1. Electric vehicle purchases
2. Home energy efficiency
3. Rooftop solar and heat pump installations

If the clean energy tax credits are effectively eliminated, Mainers can expect a nearly 5 percent rise in energy bills by 2029. This will not only lead to increased energy costs but also hinder our climate mitigation and adaptation goals. Now is the time to urge senators, especially Senator Collins, to oppose the budget bill passed by the House and to reinstate the clean energy tax credits. There are other ways to balance the budget that do not involve cutting investments in clean energy, and that provide a four-fold return on investment.