Yesterday, Senior Fellow and Director of Climate Strategy at the Center for American Progress, Dan Weiss, went on CNBC to discuss ‘the economic benefits of going green’ as it relates to the energy bill currently in Congress. Weiss, in general an advocate of the clean energy provisions, went head to head with Max Schultz of the Manhattan Institute, whose sole platform was costs.

The unjustifiably controversial renewable portfolio standard was the heart of the debate. As Weiss pointed out, half of the states in the union have already adopted their own renewable energy standard. Yet Schultz claimed a nationwide standard would be unachievable, mainly due to economics.

But revolutionizing our economy into one that is low-carbon does not have to be expensive. As CAP notes in its major report “Capturing the Energy Opportunity,” building the infrastructure to rely on renewable electricity resources can generate new jobs and industry work and eventually lower consumer prices. By 2020, as Weiss notes, a renewable portfolio standard is expected to save consumers.