A new report indicates the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden richly rewards Colorado and the nation.

Last week, the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado-Boulder released an economic impact study that gauged the research facilities worth at $875 million in Colorado, including $616 million in Jefferson County.

Nationally, research developed in Golden drives $1.4 billion in commerce in the last fiscal year.

Read the report by clicking here.

Gardner is a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources who has a history as a cheerleader and political benefactor for the facility.

Saturday he called it instrumental to advancing renewable energy technology, while generating dollars in the process.

“During my time in the U.S. Senate, I’m proud that I have been able to help increase NREL’s funding by nearly 50 percent and protect the Wind Technology Center,” he said. “I will continue to be a strong advocate for NREL’s work to advance renewable energy sources, energy efficiency, more environmental opportunities, and grid resiliency and security.”

Weighing in has political benefits for the incumbent Republican, who faces a stiff challenge from former Gov. John Hickenlooper in November.

Though Gardner is the sponsor of the one of the most critical public lands bills that could make it into law this summer, left-leaning conservationists tell a different story about a GOP member associated with Trump’s rollbacks on environmental protections.

But some on the environmental left are also skeptical of Hickenlooper, who used to work in the oil and gas industry and compromised on fracking as governor. He also doesn’t support the Green New Deal to combat climate change, but prefers more an evolutionary approach on moving to renewable resources.

His primary challenger, Andrew Romanoff, made an issue of Hickenlooper’s energy history and still lost by 17 points.

Democrats have teed off on Gardner of his position on setting aside 400,000 acres of public lands in Colorado, a bill they haven’t been able to pass on their own.  The Colorado Outdoors Recreation and Economy Act passed the Democrat-controlled House last fall.

Gardner has declined to support the bill in the Republican-led Senate, partly because he says it’s a play to box him in, and he linked it to Sen. Michael Bennet’s support of Hickenlooper. Bennet is a co-sponsor of the Colorado bill, and he’s been critical of Gardner’s lack of support for it.

They worked together last year to get funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which supports national parks and forests. Gardner’s bill this year permanently funds the LWCF.