[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 66 (Friday, May 1, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5011-S5013]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                IDAHOANS SPEAK OUT ON HIGH ENERGY PRICES

  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, in mid-June, I asked Idahoans to share with 
me how high energy prices are affecting their lives, and they responded 
by the hundreds. The stories, numbering well over 1,200, are 
heartbreaking and touching. While energy prices have dropped in recent 
weeks, the concerns expressed remain very relevant. To respect the 
efforts of those who took the opportunity to share their thoughts, I am 
submitting every e-mail sent to me through an address set up 
specifically for this purpose to the Congressional Record. This is not 
an issue that will be easily resolved, but it is one that deserves 
immediate and serious attention, and Idahoans deserve to be heard. 
Their stories not only detail their struggles to meet everyday 
expenses, but also have suggestions and recommendations as to what 
Congress can do now to tackle this problem and find solutions that last 
beyond today. I ask unanimous consent to have today's letters printed 
in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

       As of late, the focus of our nation has been on the economy 
     and, more specifically, the price of oil and gasoline and the 
     effects it is having on normal Americans. Most media sources 
     are running stories on the terrible effects of $4-5 a gallon 
     of gas are having on the average American consumer and their 
     widespread financial hardships.
       My sincere belief is that $4 or $5 a gallon gas while 
     putting a dent in the wallet is not causing widespread 
     financial hardship on the overwhelming majority of U.S. 
     citizens. The monthly increase for Joe Average is roughly in 
     the $25-100 range. This amount should be easily absorbed by 
     virtually everyone across the U.S. There are some people for 
     whom an increase this minor would cause them to fall into 
     bankruptcy, but they are the people who would most likely end 
     up in this same situation for one reason or another and who 
     have habits and a severe lack of financial and budgeting 
     skills that need changed more than just a little cheaper gas.
       I have worked my entire professional life in the banking 
     industry and have had to foreclose on people who could not 
     afford to have increases in their needed expenses such as 
     utilities, transportation, healthcare or food during good 
     times, economically speaking. These are the same people who 
     could have absorbed these needed increases if they had merely 
     given up cable TV or their $150 per month cell phone. This is 
     the same issue we are facing today. Some sacrifices will need 
     to be made by Joe Average but Joe ought to be able to cut 
     back on non-necessities and absorb the extra costs. If Joe 
     Average refuses to make the changes to his daily habits, then 
     we should not bail him out of a situation that he put himself 
     in and refuses to change his ways in order to get out of.
       The belief I have is that $4-5 gas will actually be a major 
     savior not only to the US but to the human race as a whole. 
     The high prices will force us to innovate and bring 
     technologies that have been available for years into the 
     mainstream, to decrease our overall use of non-renewable 
     energy and decrease our pollution levels. Even if one does 
     not buy into the notion of global warming, we all know that 
     breathing pollution is extremely harmful and expensive in 
     terms of healthcare costs. Many pollution problems can be 
     solved at the same time as our energy problems.
       Significantly more money, in the multiple tens or hundreds 
     of billions of dollars, needs to be spent on emerging energy-
     efficient technologies in order to secure a long term 
     solution to energy and pollution problems; not to put a 
     temporary band-aid on gas prices to win over a few votes. The 
     peoples of the world look to the US to be a leader and 
     innovator of new technologies and we have been sorely lacking 
     for many years.
       Most European countries and Japan are vastly further ahead 
     both on efficiency and pollution control standards. We have 
     many bright scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs in this 
     country who have the ideas, goals and desires to accomplish 
     this task; what they lack is the financial access to get the 
     ideas into large-scale production. The U.S. vitally needs an 
     effort on the scale of the Manhattan Project or the Apollo 
     Program to get technology from its infancy and

[[Page S5012]]

     early adopter stages into a mature industry. These changes 
     will in no doubt be hard on the existing industries and 
     infrastructures as they make the changes needed to accomplish 
     this but the long term effects are going to be felt for many 
     generations to come and deserve to be done right. This is not 
     something that affects just the US, rich or poor or election 
     results; these changes need to be made for the entire human 
     race across the globe. The US has a chance to be the world 
     leader once again. If you wish to see some of these 
     technologies and how they can help people, pick up the July 
     2008 edition of Popular Science Magazine and see what is 
     already being done and what can be done to ensure an energy 
     independent, energy efficient and clean way of life.
       In the short term, times will be tough for many Americans 
     and many people across the world as fuel, food and needed 
     goods prices increase. We are a tough people and we will make 
     the changes in our daily lives in the short term to get by, 
     most will have very little actual changes to our lifestyles. 
     What the American people and all people need is a change in 
     their way of life, change in transportation, our choice of 
     energy and our way of thinking. A great deal of the needed 
     technologies are already developed and merely need help 
     getting into the mainstream while others desperately need 
     funding and qualified help to transform ideas into products. 
     This is where the government needs to step in and be a leader 
     and savior by starting large scale programs tackling energy, 
     efficiency and pollution problems not pumping more oil or 
     subsidizing inefficient ethanol for a short term quick fix.
       Please step forward not just as an Idahoan or an American 
     but as a leader of all people who honestly wants to promote 
     the greater good for all and get legislation moving to enact 
     large scale technological programs and set aside large scale 
     funding in the tens or hundreds of billions of dollars to 
     help lead the American people and the rest of the world into 
     a brighter new future.
     Matt, Boise.
                                  ____

       It is my opinion that we as a nation need to take our 
     undying focus off of this petroleum problem and start 
     shopping around for a better, clearer, abundant and renewable 
     resource that can be used for fuel. It bothers me to see gas 
     going up so fast and always asking myself ``when will it 
     end?'' and know that so much of our tax money is [thrown] 
     away on programs very few of us proffer from. I am not saying 
     that all the nation's programs are pointless, but most can 
     use a good trim. So please explain to me why you would rather 
     fight Congress on the matter of lower fuel costs and not push 
     alternative fuels that so many of our own citizens can grow? 
     And what ever happened to hydrogen? Was that too obvious of a 
     choice that it got pushed aside? Or is it because it is so 
     abundant that no one could get rich off of it? It just makes 
     me sick to see where we are headed. So I will pretend that 
     you actually read this email and listened and you pretend to 
     be keeping our best interests in mind.
       A worried citizen of the richest Nation on Earth,
     Daniel.
                                  ____

       My son, with a family of seven, lives in Las Vegas and, 
     because of high gas prices, is now biking the eight miles to 
     work in over 100 degrees to save on gas. Their monthly fuel 
     budget has skyrocketed to $400 per month. My daughter works 
     30 miles away from her home for an auto dealership. They have 
     continually cut workers because people are not buying cars 
     due to the gas prices. They have recently cut a skeleton 
     staff down to four days a week to conserve on the gas 
     expended.
       My husband and I are retired and are planning no new future 
     trips due to the expended fuel. I have never seen such an 
     economy. We are told that milk (a staple food) will soon be 
     $5 per gallon. How can growing families afford this? We will 
     soon be down to bread and water with the skyrocketing prices. 
     We are thoroughly fed up with both political parties for 
     allowing the nation to come to such a state. There is trouble 
     in every sector of the market but no one will do what is 
     right for the nation at large. All I can see is a downward 
     deep spiral of trouble ahead.
       Thank you for listening.
     Randa, Rigby.
                                  ____

       Here is what is going on here in Idaho and in other states 
     as well. A lot of Americans live in rural areas. We have to 
     get in our autos and drive rather it is to the work school 
     groceries. As for me, I live behind the Pocatello airport, 
     and drive 12 miles into the railroad depot to go to work. My 
     wife teaches school in American Falls, which is 28 miles from 
     home. Right now the summer school teachers are riding the 
     school bus from Bannock Peak truck stop into American Falls, 
     which really helps out. I live in eastern Power County, so 
     back and forth [with] school activities etc.
       With high gas prices, I can only see it getting worse. It 
     is not like as in other countries [like] Europe, etc., where 
     I can step out my front door and get on the bus. [If I could] 
     ride my bike, I would; but we cannot so therefore I am 
     trapped into paying high gas prices. If gas was to go to $10 
     a gallon, we would be down and out stuck! What is this 
     country going to do? We have got some real energy problems in 
     this country and it could take us down, recession or even 
     depression. Even the Union Pacific is affected by it; they 
     will not even let me out notch 5 on the throttle. Fuel, fuel, 
     fuel and the cost of fuel.
     Merlin, Pocatello.
                                  ____

       Energy prices are certainly affecting many far and wide in 
     the U.S. Yet the writing is clearly on the wall and we, as a 
     country, must act quickly to adapt to a new energy world.
       We can no longer afford ``business as usual'' policies that 
     heavily favor supply-side issues (extraction and generation). 
     We must look upon the tried and true principles of saving 
     (conservation) and diversification (alternative energies). 
     Both these strategies must be wholly embraced by elected 
     officials such as you if the country is to be lead out of a 
     worsening energy crisis and on to a path toward prosperity.
       While generating more traditional fuels (oil) can help, it 
     is a short-term solution at best. Our 100+ year binge on 
     fossil fuel is now coming to a close. We must choose how this 
     transition will take place. It is clear that global demand is 
     outpacing global supplies, given the best scientific (not 
     political) assessments. While technology holds a great deal 
     of promise, it is clear that no such magic tech bullet yet 
     exists. We can no longer afford to stick our heads in the 
     sand.
       We need to grab this energy lever with both hands--one for 
     conservation and one for clean alternative energy--and open 
     the door to a new, more competitive America. Anything short 
     of this exposed our country to great risk and makes a mockery 
     of our independence, our innovation, our global leadership 
     and our ability to recreate our future.
       I hope you fully appreciate the decisions that face this 
     country and will choose to take leadership role in ushering 
     in a new day for America. The eyes of Idaho are upon you.
     Craig, Ketchum.
                                  ____

       As a small business owner in welding, the sharp rise in 
     steel and gas have hit me hard. I have to use gas for my 
     welder when in the field and electricity will be a problem in 
     my small shop. I do not know if you are aware of the prices 
     of steel, but all across the board I pay more than double for 
     steel, welding rod and related items. Since my product is 
     made of steel, it's putting a huge bite in my ability to make 
     ends meet, let alone trying to get ahead. It is hitting me 
     hard enough to make me wonder how long before I have to fold.
        It is nonsense that we have all the resources in this 
     great land to meet our needs without dependence on foreign 
     supplies of oil, but we are forbidden by agencies that are 
     run, it seems, by fanatics who have their own agenda and it 
     is not the welfare of the people who keep this country going. 
     Why are we not able to utilize our own oil fields and drill 
     for oil when we know where it is. I do not understand. It is 
     like watching a bunch of school kids fighting over who gets 
     to kick the ball first and for how many times when I see all 
     the nonsense going on in Washington.
       Thanks for not being one of the spoiled brats in our 
     nation's capital.
     Brian.
                                  ____

       Yes, gas prices have affected us dramatically. We are 
     farmers and thus live in a rural environment. With the rising 
     fuel prices, making a profit on our crops is extremely 
     difficult. As diesel rises, so do fertilizers and herbicides 
     and pesticides. They are three times more expensive than 
     three years ago. Freight for hauling crops is way up, and so 
     forth. Driving takes a huge bite out of our budget even 
     though we have cut back as much as we can. Remember when 
     America was first settled and they refused to buy from 
     England so that they would start to be productive and self-
     reliant as a nation? Well, it worked did it not? We became 
     the richest and most prosperous Nation on earth. We do not 
     need other nations to survive. We can produce what we use 
     ourselves. We have got ourselves into this mess and we can 
     get out. Get Congress, the President and the Supreme Court to 
     stick with the specific responsibilities assigned to them by 
     the Constitution. Allow the free market to work as it should. 
     (Read Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations. The Founding Fathers 
     relied on this wisdom.) It would be sticky for a while but 
     Americans have always been tough. If we want America to 
     survive then we have to fix the problem. The Constitution has 
     the answers. America will crumble if we do not take serious 
     action. Thank you for your efforts!
     MaryLynne.
                                  ____

       I am writing this in response to your letter on energy. I 
     live in a rural area, approximately 8 miles from the town of 
     Preston. Because of the distances involved in daily commuting 
     and other required driving, our fuel bill has more than 
     doubled in the last two years. Last month it was in excess of 
     $500.00. Gas has since risen more than .20 per gallon.
       Income is not matching the rapid increase in cost of fuel 
     and this has greatly reduced the amount of discretionary 
     money that we have. Most of my neighbors have stated the 
     same. Those that have the least amount to spare are the ones 
     that are being hardest hit by the rising energy costs.
       The federal government should allow and encourage all forms 
     of energy production: drilling for oil in the Gulf and 
     Alaska; relaxed regulations and tax breaks for new 
     refineries; streamlined permit process for new nuclear power 
     plants. The list is as endless as is the regulations that 
     have been imposed on the energy companies.
       Thank you for your time.
     Mike, Preston.
                                  ____

       I receive an email stating that you would like to have 
     Idahoans tell their stories about

[[Page S5013]]

     rising oil prices. I am a single mother of three, working 
     full-time as it is, but now thinking about taking on another 
     job because of the cost of gas. Our family has tried to plan 
     a week visit to the coast for the past few years, and the 
     cost of gas has controlled our plans! This is taking a toll 
     on my budget and our family, knowing that every month, there 
     is never any extra. The other option for me is to turn to a 
     welfare program. Which is more beneficial--more people on 
     welfare or using our oil reserves? What makes it most 
     frustrating is that the United States has the oil! Help us 
     out. I would like to travel somewhere with my children before 
     they are grown up and gone.
     Sophia, Pocatello.
                                  ____

       With regards to your recent query about the effect of the 
     gas prices on our family: yes, the high prices have forced 
     changes on our family. We now combine trips to save fuel, and 
     I now commute to work by bicycle three times a week and am 
     losing weight doing it. We are putting much more pressure on 
     management to allow telecommuting.
       Are these all bad things? Is this a drastic problem? No, 
     actually this is most probably a good thing. For the first 
     time in years we, as a nation, are using less gas. While it 
     will definitely have an impact on our lifestyle, the problem 
     can be mitigated by lifestyle changes (carpooling, mass 
     transit, cycling, downsizing to smaller vehicles). There are 
     many ways to do this and virtually every nation in the world 
     besides the U.S. has done it.
       The real concern is two-fold, both of which can be 
     considered failures by our elected officials. First, the lack 
     of affordable mass transit. For years, our leaders have 
     refused to lead on this situation and instead buried their 
     heads in the sand, preferring to believe that gas will always 
     be at $1/gallon. Something like a 50c/gallon tax years ago 
     would have provided for an efficient infrastructure, reduced 
     the demand and possibly reduced the current price increases.
       The second failure is the misguided use of ethanol in the 
     attempt to pretend that we are actually doing something to 
     reduce our emissions. This is in reality nothing more than a 
     subsidy to agri-business at the cost of increased food 
     prices. Corn ethanol is nothing but a smokescreen that is 
     contributing to increased food prices. If we are serious 
     about ethanol, then let us import sugar cane and make the 
     ethanol from the cane, or, even better, let us create ethanol 
     plants in the countries that grow the sugar cane. That way we 
     would be helping these countries, most of which are dirt 
     poor, provide employment and earn hard currency. In turn, we 
     would reduce our emissions without adding to the food price 
     increases.
       Yes, I know that you wanted a lot of whine-a-grams so that 
     you could parade them in front of Congress and try and open 
     the Arctic Refuge to drilling to benefit the oil companies, 
     even though they are making obscene profits, but maybe we 
     should look at reality. Drilling offshore and in the Arctic 
     will not reduce prices. Oil companies have found that people 
     can afford $4/gallon gas and will manipulate the situation to 
     keep gas prices high. The only real solution is to reduce our 
     consumption. Let us provide business with incentives for 
     telecommuting and usage of green energy. Let us provide 
     communities with help and incentives for the creation of 
     bike-paths as well as options like light rail etc.
       This way we can provide for the future, reduce emissions, 
     reduce demand for gas and in turn reduce oil and food prices. 
     But in order to do this we need to look beyond the old 
     mentality that got us here. Drill and consume, drill and 
     consume is no longer going to work. It will provide nothing 
     more than a short term minimal respite.
       We look to you as one of our leaders to promote a long-term 
     viable solution. Thank you for your time in considering this.
     Robert.

                          ____________________