[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 17, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S705-S706]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 3--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS THAT
IT IS THE GOAL OF THE UNITED STATES THAT, NOT LATER THAN JANUARY 1,
2025, THE AGRICULTURAL, FORESTRY, AND WORKING LAND OF THE UNITED STATES
SHOULD PROVIDE FROM RENEWABLE RESOURCES NOT LESS THAN 25 PERCENT OF THE
TOTAL ENERGY CONSUMED IN THE UNITED STATES AND CONTINUE TO PRODUCE
SAFE, ABUNDANT, AND AFFORDABLE FOOD, FEED, AND FIBER
Mr. SALAZAR (for himself, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Lugar, Mr.
Obama, Mr. Hagel, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Coleman, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Thune, Mr.
Nelson of Nebraska, Mr. Brownback, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Allard, Mr. Kohl,
Mr. Menendez, Mr. Tester, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Brown, Mr. Baucus, Mr.
Durbin, Mr. Feingold, and Mr. Cochran) submitted the following
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry:
S. Con. Res. 3
Whereas the United States has a quantity of renewable
energy resources that is sufficient to supply a significant
portion of the energy needs of the United States;
Whereas the agricultural, forestry, and working land of the
United States can help ensure a sustainable domestic energy
system;
Whereas accelerated development and use of renewable energy
technologies provide numerous benefits to the United States,
including improved national security, improved balance of
payments, healthier rural economies, improved environmental
quality, and abundant, reliable, and affordable energy for
all citizens of the United States;
Whereas the production of transportation fuels from
renewable energy would help the United States meet rapidly
growing domestic and global energy demands, reduce the
dependence of the United States on energy imported from
volatile regions of the world that are politically unstable,
stabilize the cost and availability of energy, and safeguard
the economy and security of the United States;
Whereas increased energy production from domestic renewable
resources would attract substantial new investments in energy
infrastructure, create economic growth, develop new jobs for
the citizens of the United States, and increase the income
for farm, ranch, and forestry jobs in the rural regions of
the United States;
Whereas increased use of renewable energy is practical and
can be cost effective with the implementation of supportive
policies and proper incentives to stimulate markets and
infrastructure; and
Whereas public policies aimed at enhancing renewable energy
production and accelerating technological improvements will
further reduce energy costs over time and increase market
demand: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives
concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that it is the
goal of the United States that, not later than January 1,
2025, the agricultural, forestry, and working land of the
United States should provide from renewable resources not
less than 25 percent of the total energy consumed in the
United States and continue to produce safe, abundant, and
affordable food, feed, and fiber.
[[Page S706]]
Mr. SALAZAR. Mr. President, today Senator Grassley and I, along with
our colleagues Senators Harkin, Lugar, Obama, Hagel, and others, are
submitting Senate Concurrent Resolution 3, the ``25x'25'' Resolution,
as we did last year, 25x'25 is a critical vision for our energy future
that will help reduce our dependence on foreign oil by building a new
energy economy here at home. Our resolution establishes a national goal
of producing 25 percent of America's energy from renewable sources--
like solar, wind and biofuels--by 2025.
The ``25x'25'' vision is widely endorsed, bold, and fully attainable.
If implemented, it would dramatically improve our energy security, our
economy, and our ability to protect the environment.
I am pleased that more than 20 of my colleagues in the Senate, from
both sides of the aisle, are cosponsoring this resolution. In addition,
the ``25x'25'' vision has been endorsed by 22 current and former
governors and several State legislatures across the country.
The Big Three automobile manufacturers--Ford, Chrysler, and General
Motors--are all behind ``25x'25'' So are many agricultural
organizations, environmental groups, scientists, and businesses,
ranging from the Farm Bureau and Farmers' Union to the Natural
Resources Defense Council and John Deere. The breadth of support for
the ``25x'25'' vision speaks to the extraordinary economic,
environmental, and national security benefits that its implementation
will yield. In all, nearly 400 organizations have embraced this vision
and are working together on a plan to implement it.
The resolution that Senator Grassley and I are submitting makes the
``25x'25'' vision a policy goal for our Nation. It sets a challenging
but realistic target for our legislative and budgetary work on energy.
Our resolution says that the ingenuity and entrepreneurship of the
American people should be the engine for a new, clean energy economy.
I urge every American to join with me and the roughly 400 partner
organizations that are part of the 25x'25 Alliance to make this goal a
reality. Results from a recent study conducted by the University of
Tennessee shows that reaching the 25x'25 goal is achievable. The study
also shows that 25x'25 would: increase net farm income by $180 billion
and, including multiplier effects, could result in $700 billion in
economic activity annually; create approximately 5 million new jobs
here at home in 2025; save as much as $15 billion in government
payments.
America's working people can and should be at the center of our
energy revolution. Farmers and ranchers in my native San Luis Valley,
in Sterling, CO, and elsewhere are already leading the way; they are
building biodiesel plants and ethanol refineries that help power cars,
tractors, and trucks. They are building wind turbines in Prowers County
and biomass generators in Jackson County. And they are searching for
new technologies that will allow them to make even greater
contributions to our energy supply.
These Americans understand that we cannot continue to import 60
percent of our oil from foreign countries, many of which are hostile to
the United States, if we aim to be strong and secure in the world. They
know that we will have to build a clean energy economy if we are to
reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
A clean energy economy will take root in our farms and fields. It
will help revitalize a rural America that has been forgotten for too
long. It will spur our engineers to new developments and designs, and
it will help establish the U.S. as the world leader in clean energy
technologies.
It is time for Congress to take a more active role in our clean
energy future. Establishing a national goal--``25x'25'' is the first
step.
Today, with this resolution, we articulate a common vision for our
energy policy. It is a target we can hit. It is a target that
Governors, Senators, Representatives, state legislators, farmers,
ranchers, entrepreneurs, scientists, and automakers, all wish to
achieve.
I am proud to be working with Senator Grassley and others to
establish ``25x'25'' as our Nation's shared goal for our energy
security and I look forward to working on a legislative agenda in this
Congress that will help us reach that target.
Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I rise today to join Senator Salazar in
introducing a concurrent resolution which expresses the goal of the
United States to provide 25 percent of the Nation's energy needs from
renewable resources by 2025.
The goal of this 25 by 25 resolution is quite simple: to replace 25
percent of our total energy needs with renewable resources like wind,
hydropower, solar, geothermal, biomass and biofuels by 2025. This is a
bold goal, but given our current energy situation in the U.S., it is a
necessary goal.
The impact of increased energy prices is being felt around the
country by working families, farmers, businesses and industries. The
increased cost for energy at the pump, in home heating and for
industrial uses has the potential to jeopardize our economic security
and vitality.
Our effort with this concurrent resolution is to signal to America's
farmers, ranchers and forestry industry, that we believe they have the
ability and resources to generate 25 percent of our energy needs. And,
that it's in our economic and national security interest to do so.
There are many inherent virtues in producing our own domestic energy
from renewable resources. It is good for our environment. It is good
for our national and economic security. It will provide an economic
boost for our rural economies. And perhaps most importantly, it will
ensure a stable, secure, domestic supply of affordable energy.
Already, our farmers and ranchers are working hard to use their
resources to produce electricity from wind, biomass and other
agricultural wastes. In addition, corn, soybeans and other crops are
being used to produce transportation fuels like ethanol and biodiesel.
It is evident that rural America has the drive to achieve this goal.
While this concurrent resolution states our renewable energy goal, it
does not prescribe a way to achieve the goal. Rather, it recognizes the
benefit of implementing supportive policies and incentives to stimulate
the development and use of renewable energy. It also identifies the
benefits of technological improvements to the cost and market appeal of
renewable energy.
The supporters of this goal commit to support sensible policies and
proper incentives to work toward the goal. I am hopeful that my
colleagues will recognize the importance of this effort, and will
consider supporting us in this goal to produce 25 percent of our energy
needs from renewable resources by 2025.
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