Pickens Plan, Verizon, and Student Loans

PICKENS PLAN – CEI Center for Energy & the Environment

Coalition Letter to the Senate: Reject Subsidies to Big Wind, T. Boone Pickens!

Yesterday, the Senate voted down the “T. Boone Pickens plan,” a proposal to expand credits for purchases of natural-gas cars and trucks and extend tax credits for solar and wind energy. CEI’s Center for Energy and the Environment had long worked to expose the plan for what it was: a handout to T. Boone Pickens and other magnates like him. CEI earlier joined with several other groups in a coalition letter to the Senate, urging them to reject the plan. 

TELECOMMUNICATIONS – RYAN RADIA & JOE CALASCIONE

eWeek: Verizon’s Deal With Cable Companies Finds Supporters, Detractors

Verizon’s deal with cable companies to acquire spectrum licenses has regulators worried. They argue that this deal—like the failed AT&T/T-Mobile deal—will harm competition. But CEI analysts disagree. Ryan Radia and Joe Calascione earlier filed comments on behalf of CEI outlining why this deal is in the public interest. Read the comments here. 

AMERICA’S DEBT – HANS BADER

Openmarket.org: Student Loans: America’s Next Debt Bomb

Experts are warning of a student loan bubble. CEI’s Hans Bader notes that in recent years, student loan debt has skyrocketed from $100 billion to $867 billion, which surpasses the $704 billion in outstanding credit card debt. Yet, “this massive student loan debt is not buying much of an education for many students,” says Bader. > View the full commentary on Openmarket.org >Interview Hans Bader