WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 6, 2012) After the Bureau of Labor Statistics today announced that the U.S. economy added 200,000 jobs in December and the unemployment rate dropped to 8.5 percent, the BlueGreen Alliance released the following statement from Executive Director David Foster:

“Today’s jobs report is good news for American workers. But it doesn’t relieve Congress of its responsibility to take action to keep this momentum going and to put America back to work.

“Winning economic strategies focused on the industries of the future and the $5 trillion clean-tech industry should be America’s focus in 2012. To do that, Congress must move forward with smart policies and strategic investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency and advanced vehicle technologies, the rebuilding of our transportation, energy and communications infrastructure, and the production of cleaner, safer chemicals.

“One easy first step for Congress would be swift passage of a long-term reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Act. Through action like this, we can recreate the millions of jobs lost in the Great Recession and set America on the path to economic prosperity in the 21st century global economy.”