Secretary of Agriculture and Undersecretary of Energy Headline List of Invited Speakers at ACORE's Phase II Forum in Washington, DC; Renewable Energy Policy to be Shaped by Regional and National Strategies

Washington, DC - The American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE) today announced the names of speakers participating at the "Renewable Energy in America: Policies for Phase II" forum, to be held October 17-18, 2005 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.

Speakers include the Honorable Mike Johanns, Secretary of Agriculture (confirmed); the Honorable David Garman, Undersecretary of Energy (invited); and Admiral Dennis V. McGinn, (USN ret.), Battelle Science & Technology International.

The conference will seek to chart a course for the US after the 2005 energy bill, and encourage participants to define the national polices that will result in renewable energy contributing to 20%, 30%, 40% of national energy supply in the next 20-30-40 years.

Additional opening speakers include Hank Habicht, CEO, Global Energy & Technology Foundation; Dan Reicher, President, New Energy Capital; John Geesman, Commissioner, California Energy Commission; Robert Gleitz, General Manager, GE Wind Energy; and John Anderson, Head of Power Industry Investing, John Hancock.

"John Hancock has joined ACORE and the Phase II process to add an investor's perspective on policies that can help encourage lender support for renewable energy technologies, bring their cost down as a result, and speed their adoption," said John C. S. Anderson, Head of Power Industry Investing at John Hancock.

Speakers will come from over ten states in the East, Mid-America and the West. They include Rob Pratt, Director, Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust; Lew Milford, President, Clean Energy Group; Katie McGinty, Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection; Bill Flynn, Chairman, New York Public Service Commission; Larry Shirley, Director, North Carolina State Energy Office; Ernie Shea, Coordinator, Rural Energy (25 x 25), Energy Future Coalition; Hans Detweiler, Deputy Director of Energy for the Illinois State Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity; Dub Taylor, Director, Texas State Energy Office; Howard Lerner, Executive Director, Environmental Law & Policy Institute; Jan Hamrin, Director, Center for Resource Solutions; Paul Orbuch, Western Governor's Association; Jon Wellinghoff, Partner, Beckley Singleon, Nevada; and Jon Slangerup, CEO, Solar Integrated Technologies.

The importance of multi-state collaboration will be featured in the Phase II conference. "Already, we've worked with New Mexico and Oklahoma on regional large-scale wind energy storage, and with Louisiana on better quantifying the Gulf's vast offshore wind reservoir," stated Dub Taylor, Director of the Texas State Energy Office.

Leaders in the environment, technology, national security, and utility community will speak, including Chris Flavin, President, Worldwatch Institute; Carol Werner, President, Environmental & Energy Studies Institute; Roger Ballentine, President Green Strategies; Bill Holmberg, Chairman, Biomass Coordinating Council; R. James Woolsey, Former Director, Central Intelligence; Gal Luft, President, Institute for Analysis of Global Security; Scott Sklar, President, The Stella Group; Tammy Klein, Director, Global Biofuels and the Americas, International Biofuels Quality Center; Deron Lavaas, Natural Resources Defense Council; Hank Courtright, VP Generation, Electric Power Research Institute; Alan Nogee, Director of the Clean Energy Program, Union of Concerned Scientists; and David Wooley, Vice President, The Energy Foundation.

The chairmen of the renewable energy caucuses in the Senate and House are anticipated to speak. They are Senator Wayne Allard (R-CO); Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND); and Rep. Mark Udall (D-CO). In addition, Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) has been invited to speak.

"The states are in the lead on renewable energy and environmental policy," said Rob Pratt, Director of the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust. "But there is a tremendously important role for the federal government to provide leadership and move us towards national solutions. We are coming to Washington to convey that message."

The Phase II national policy forum is set to take place October 17-18, 2005 in the Cannon Caucus Room and the Capitol Hill Club in Washington, DC. The conference is being organized by ACORE in conjunction with the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucuses of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, and in cooperation with the Energy & Environment Studies Institute.

The policy forum is being joined by 32 supporting organizations including the Alliance to Save Energy, American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, American Planning Association, American Public Power Association, American Wind Energy Association, California Clean Energy Fund, Center for American Progress, Center for Resource Solutions, Clean Energy Group, Clean Fuels Development Coalition, Community Environmental Council, Electric Power Research Institute, Environmental Law & Policy Center, Global Energy Network Institute, Interfaith Environmental Council, Interstate Renewable Energy Council, National Association of State Energy Officials, National Corn Growers Association, National Hydrogen Association, National Hydropower Association, National Rural Electric Co-op Association, Natural Resources Defense Council, New Uses Council/Biomass Coordinating Council, REEEP, Solar Electric Power Association, Solar Electric Industries Association, Texas Renewable Energy Industries Association, The Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life of Southern California, U.S. Conference of Mayors, Union of Concerned Scientists, World Resources Institute, and Worldwatch Institute.

More information about the national forum is available at: www.acore.org.

About The American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE)

ACORE, a 501(c)(3) membership nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., is dedicated to bringing renewable energy into the mainstream of the US economy and lifestyle through information and communications programs. ACORE provides a common platform for the wide range of interests in the renewable energy community including industries, associations, utilities, end users, professional service firms, financial institutions and government agencies. ACORE serves as a forum through which the parties work together on common interests. Membership information is available at: www.acore.org.