A bipartisan energy-efficiency bill that is seen as one of the few genuine prospects for congressional action this year has picked up influential support from a prominent trade association, according to a letter released today.

The National Association of Manufacturers is the latest industry group backing the efficiency bill, S. 1000, sponsored by Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio), joining the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and nearly 150 other businesses, trade associations and pro-efficiency groups.

The bill has been stalled since being voted out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee last summer, although its bipartisan pedigree and industry support lead observers to mark it as perhaps the only significant energy legislation that could pass the sharply divided Congress.

"S. 1000 is incentive-based, mandate-free legislation that enjoys broad support in the Senate and in the business community," wrote Ross Eisenberg, NAM's vice president for energy and resources policy, in the letter dated Thursday to Shaheen and Portman that the senators released today.

"This bipartisan legislation would positively impact manufacturing and construction jobs and increase the energy security of the United States by reducing overall energy consumption and I am hopeful it will soon be considered by the full Senate," Eisenberg added.

A Shaheen spokesman said the NAM letter demonstrates continued interest from industry in efforts to boost energy efficiency but does not fundamentally change the landscape around the bill. Energy and Natural Resources voted 18-3 in July to send the bill to the floor, but it remains unclear when it would be taken up by the full chamber, the spokesman said.

Among other measures, the bill would strengthen voluntary business codes and establish a revolving loan fund to boost efficiency at manufacturing facilities.

"Technologies produced by U.S. companies that reduce energy consumption are readily available today, and S. 1000 reduces barriers to their implementation," Eisenberg wrote. "This legislation advances important public policy priorities through utilization of private sector energy solutions in the public and private sector."

A similar House bill sponsored by Reps. Charles Bass (R-N.H.) and Jim Matheson (D-Utah) has seen no action since its introduction in February.

Chip Yost, an assistant vice president at NAM, said in an interview that the association's members are keen to see the bills pass because they have been manufacturing energy-efficient products and trying to reduce their own energy use to save money. He said NAM would continue to press members in visits to Capitol Hill throughout the year to urge support for the legislation.

While efficiency upgrades often save a company money, it is a struggle to pay the up-front costs of performing retrofits, and that is an area where the efficiency legislation would be particularly helpful, Yost said.

"I think the barriers for these are always how do you pay for it," he added.