Business
Obama to talk promote jobs, discuss energy in North Carolina
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Obama had not yet laid out the proposal.
If Congress approves, up to 15 model communities would be picked as models of innovation.
Obama’s proposal effectively endorses a 2011 bipartisan congressional proposal to jump-start the market penetration of electric vehicles through model communities, but expands it to include other kinds of advanced fuel-efficient vehicles.
Obama has called for 1 million plug-in vehicles on American roads by 2015.
Obama’s attention to energy comes as high gas prices put a strain on pocket books. On Tuesday, the nationwide average for regular unleaded slipped less than a penny to US$3.764 per gallon, ending a string of price increases that began on February 8.
“It’s not good for the overall economy, because when gas prices go up, consumer spending oftentimes pulls back,” Obama said Tuesday in a White House news conference. “And we’re in the midst right now of a recovery that is starting to build up steam, and we don’t want to reverse it.”
Obama was also touting tax incentives for the purchase and deployment of more fuel-efficient vehicles that were included in his proposed budget for next year. He wants to increase the purchase incentive for some kinds of advanced vehicles to US$10,000 from US$7,500, something that would require congressional approval, and make the credit available to car buyers at the time of sale.
Obama was visiting a long-distance truck plant that has been hiring new workers to help fill an uptick in orders. It’s a chance for him to tout a rebounding economy that is creating more jobs, especially in the manufacturing sector.
Obama will talk about the economy at a Freightliner plant in Mount Holly, a community of 14,000. It’s one of three Freightliner plants in the Charlotte area. He was proposing a new purchase credit for fuel-efficient large trucks.
