[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 58 (Thursday, May 5, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E886]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E886]]
               OPPOSE HR 6, THE ENERGY POLICY ACT OF 2005

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 5, 2005

  Ms. McCOLLUM of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, in 2001 the newly elected 
President George W. Bush visited St. Paul to announce his vision of 
energy independence to the American people. Unfortunately, the 
President's vision of limitless domestic petroleum exploration, natural 
resource exploitation and consumption are becoming a reality. Today, 
tragically, House Republicans expand the Bush agenda of tax cuts for 
the energy industry, dependence on foreign oil and destruction of our 
environment.
  With only two percent of world oil reserves, the U.S. will never be 
able to produce enough petroleum to be self-sufficient. America needs a 
comprehensive energy policy that prioritizes incentives for efficiency, 
conservation, alternative energy sources. Our nation needs to invest in 
the development of the next generation fuel sources like fuel cells, 
hydrogen power and home grown Minnesota fuels like ethanol. A major 
commitment and investment in these advancements has the potential to 
create a revolutionary transformation of the global economy, liberate 
our nation from our addiction to oil from Saudi Arabia and the Middle 
East, and start the environmental healing that will keep our planet 
alive.
  Unfortunately, H.R. 6 fails to even attempt to meet these goals and 
in fact undermines them. Instead, the Republican energy bill spends 93 
percent of the $8.1 billion in tax incentives it provides to oil and 
coal companies. The same companies that are already making huge profits 
from the skyrocketing gas prices our families are paying to heat our 
homes and put gas in our cars. The President doesn't even believe these 
companies need incentives. At a recent speech to the American Society 
of Newspaper Editors, President Bush said, ``I will tell you with $55 
oil, we don't need incentives for oil and gas companies to explore. 
There are plenty of incentives. What we need is to put a strategy in 
place that will help this country over time become less dependent.''
  This Republican bill wastes enormous amounts of taxpayer money and it 
contributes to the destruction of our environment. It tramples the 
`polluter pays' principle and forces the American people to pick up the 
$29 billion cost to clean up the mess created by MTBE--the mess that is 
contaminating the drinking water of tens of millions of Americans. It's 
an outrageous abuse of power to let these MTBE polluters off the hook 
and force a billion dollar unfunded mandate onto our counties and 
cities.
  There were amendments that would have improved this bill, which I 
voted for, but they were defeated by Republican majorities. These 
amendments intended to protect our environment and our families while 
providing for responsible policies to advance a sustainable energy 
future for our nation.

  It is with great disappointment that my colleagues and I who have 
visited the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge were unable to stop the 
majority party's obsession with destroying this pristine wilderness by 
allowing oil drilling. I also supported an amendment to stop MTBE 
producers from passing the $29 billion cost of cleaning up their 
pollution to the U.S. taxpayer. I also voted for an amendment to 
increase fuel-efficiency standards for our cars and trucks, saving 
billions of barrels of oil and improving our nation's air quality.
  Each of these amendments failed because policy makers with a vision 
of a sustainable U.S. energy policy lost out to special interests 
determined to create larger corporate profits, but only after they 
receive the billions of dollars of corporate welfare benefits this 
Republican bill provides them.
  Our nation cannot sustain its addiction to petroleum consumption. 
Incentives for efficiency, conservation and alternative energy sources 
combined with responsible leadership from the White House and Congress 
are all required if the U.S. is to lead the world in energy self 
sufficiency, rather than leading the world in energy dependency.

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