One of the quickest and easiest ways to deploy more renewable energy is to create a market-based national standard that requires electric utilities to generate more electricity from renewable energy sources. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, similar requirements in 24 states and the District of Columbia have produced enough electricity to power 20 million U.S. homes and have reduced as much carbon dioxide as taking 11.5 million cars off the road or planting 18.6 million acres of trees.

During Senate consideration of H.R. 6, the energy bill, Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Norm Coleman (R-MN) offered an amendment requiring electric utilities to produce 10 percent of their electricity from clean, renewable sources by the year 2020. On June 16, 2005, the Senate approved Senate Amendment 791 by a vote of 52-48 (Senate roll call vote 141). YES is the pro-environment vote. Although this marked the third time the Senate had approved such a provision, House conferees later stripped the provision from the final conference report.