[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 36 (Monday, April 8, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2345-S2346]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       NATIONAL LABORATORIES PARTNERSHIP IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2001

  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Under the previous order, the Senate will 
now resume consideration of S. 517, which the clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 517) to authorize funding the Department of 
     Energy to enhance its mission areas through technology 
     transfer and partnerships for fiscal years 2002 through 2006, 
     and for other purposes.

  Pending:

       Daschle/Bingaman further modified amendment No. 2917, in 
     the nature of a substitute.
       Feinstein modified amendment No. 2989 (to amendment No. 
     2917), to provide regulatory oversight over energy trading 
     markets and metals trading markets.
       Kerry/McCain amendment No. 2999 (to amendment No. 2917), to 
     provide for increased average fuel economy standards for 
     passenger automobiles and light trucks.
       Dayton/Grassley amendment No. 3008 (to amendment No. 2917), 
     to require that Federal agencies use ethanol-blended gasoline 
     and biodiesel-blended diesel fuel in areas in which ethanol-
     blended gasoline and biodiesel-blended diesel fuel are 
     available.
       Lott amendment No. 3028 (to amendment No. 2917), to provide 
     for the fair treatment of Presidential judicial nominees.
       Landrieu/Kyl amendment No. 3050 (to amendment No. 2917), to 
     increase the transfer capability of electric energy 
     transmission systems through participant-funded investment.
       Graham amendment No. 3070 (to amendment No. 2917), to 
     clarify the provisions relating to the Renewable Portfolio 
     Standard.

  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Nevada, Mr. Reid.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, we are now on the energy bill. This will be 
the 14th day--at least that is my understanding of the time the Senate 
has spent on this bill.
  Prior to the Senate recessing for the spring break, the minority and 
majority staff exchanged a proposed list of amendments in order to the 
energy bill.
  Mr. President, on behalf of Leader Daschle, I wish to state for the 
record that an ongoing effort is being made to secure a finite list of 
first-degree amendments in order to the bill and hopefully this effort 
will be successful today so that we can file this finite list. I 
encourage Members who have indicated they have amendments to come forth 
with those amendments. We need to finish this bill.
  Mr. President, I was somewhat disturbed in reading in today's press--
at least I read it today, it could have been out earlier, for example, 
in one of the Hill publications, Rollcall, I believe that is where I 
read this--that Republican leaders are considering pulling

[[Page S2346]]

the plug; that is, not wanting to go forward on the energy bill unless 
it authorizes oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
  If this is such an important issue, as indicated in this piece in the 
newspapers, then why hasn't this amendment been offered? As I have 
indicated, this is, as I have said, I believe the 14th day we have 
worked on this legislation. These are 14 legislative days. That is a 
lot of time on a bill. No one has come forward with this amendment we 
have heard for years is the most important part of this legislation.
  Perhaps there has been some focus on the fact that there aren't 
enough votes to pass this legislation. There is some realization we 
cannot produce our way out of the problem with petroleum products. Out 
of the 100 percent of the petroleum reserves in the world today, the 
United States, including whatever is believed to be in the Arctic, has 
3 percent. Mr. President, 97 percent is in other places, such as 
Venezuela, the North Sea, Great Britain. Two countries have 47 percent 
of the petroleum reserve: Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
  We can't produce our way out of this. I would say, and for the 
Presiding Officer--I think maybe I can speak for him--maybe what we 
should try to do is try to figure out a way to use our mass of coal. We 
have more coal than anyplace in the world. Rather than spending the few 
dollars we do on clean coal technology, maybe we should declare a war, 
in effect, and spend a lot of money on clean coal technology because we 
have lots of coal. But it is polluting and we need to do a better job--
make it cleaner.
  I would also say that we have, in this bill, tried to develop 
alternative energy levels. We have struggled to do that, but we need to 
do that.
  Anyway, to think that we can produce our way out of this with 
petroleum products--we can't do it. The United States has 3 percent of 
the reserves in the world and we can't do it by production. We tried 
through increasing the fuel efficiency of vehicles. We didn't get 
enough votes for that. It is my understanding the Senator from 
Delaware, Mr. Carper, is going to come back with an amendment that will 
revisit that issue. Senator Carper certainly understands what his 
amendment is better than I do, but I have spoken to him and he feels 
his amendment is one that will allow this country to go forward, saving 
1 million barrels of oil a day by setting fuel efficiency standards.
  So I hope they will allow us to go forward in an orderly process with 
this legislation, to get a finite list of amendments and complete the 
legislation this week. We had a good debate on ANWR that took place for 
a good long day and part of the night. We could dispose of that issue. 
There are not 60 votes. In fact, I think there would be a real struggle 
for them to get 50 votes because the ANWR issue will be defeated on a 
bipartisan basis.

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