[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 103 (Tuesday, July 12, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1292]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 
                                  2012

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. GERALD E. CONNOLLY

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                          Friday, July 8, 2011

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2354) making 
     appropriations for energy and water development and related 
     agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2012, and 
     for other purposes:

  Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia. Mr. Chair, the Republican Energy and Water 
Appropriations Act would take American energy policy back to the 19th 
century. It slashes funding for solar, advanced vehicles, building 
efficiency, biomass, home weatherization, advanced energy research, and 
loan guarantees for renewable energy. Incredibly, as gas prices remain 
high the Republicans gut funding for fuel efficient automobiles. These 
cuts would be devastating for domestic manufacturers of renewable 
energy and energy efficiency technology, as well as our domestic auto 
industry. Consider the magnitude of these cuts:
  $97 million cut in solar funding, helping Chinese solar manufacturers 
at the expense of American producers;
  $46 million cut in fuel efficient vehicles, hurting consumers at the 
pump while putting American auto producers at a competitive 
disadvantage;
  $61 million cut in building efficiency, which will expose consumers 
to rising electricity prices;
  $33 million cut in biomass research, crippling a critical domestic 
industry which supports the timber industry and diversifies our 
electric generation portfolio;
  $141 million cut in home weatherization funding, an 81 percent cut in 
a program which saves consumers money by reducing their electric bills;
  $80 million cut for Advanced Research Projects Agency--Energy (ARPA-
E), a 44 percent cut in critical clean energy research;
  $1 billion cut in High Speed Rail money, punishing commuters in 
congested regions like the Washington-Boston corridor;
  $43 million cut in science research, hurting American 
competitiveness.
  In addition to attacking domestic manufacturing, clean energy 
production, and efficiency programs, the Republicans have inserted 
policy riders to advance a radical anti-environmental agenda at the 
expense of Americans' public health. Their rider would block the Army 
Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency from 
implementing the Clean Water Act in accordance with guidance from those 
agencies. Following a decade of regulatory uncertainty following a 
Supreme Court decision, the Obama administration issued guidance to 
help landowners comply with the Clean Water Act. This guidance replaced 
a confusing patchwork of lower level court decisions and produced the 
regulatory certainty that Republicans claim to support. This rider 
demonstrates that the Republicans are not actually interested in 
regulatory ``certainty;'' they are simply opposed to any and all 
environmental and public health regulations. Since they know they can't 
win a public debate about these public health standards, they are 
trying to sneak in a rider to an appropriations bill to block the 
regulations.
  American entrepreneurs developed the solar panel and more 
sophisticated wind turbines, yet China and Germany are far ahead of 
American wind and solar production. The Obama administration requested 
funding increases for renewable energy so America can compete and 
produce clean energy generation domestically, but the Republican budget 
would actually slash clean energy funding.
  Just as the American auto industry is recovering as a result of the 
Obama Administration's intervention, this Republican appropriations 
bill would gut advanced vehicle and vehicle efficiency funding. We need 
to produce more efficient vehicles and advanced hybrid vehicles here in 
America. The American auto industry declined in the 1970s and 1980s as 
foreign competitors produced more efficient, technologically advanced 
vehicles. We cannot afford to give up market share again by 
surrendering to foreign auto producers.
  This Republican appropriations bill is not an isolated attack on 
American clean energy production and industrial competitiveness. The 
same Republicans have already passed legislation in the House--
thankfully not the Senate--to repeal the Clean Air Act and block 
vehicle efficiency standards in the future. Never in the history of 
American politics has one of our great political parties been so blind 
to opportunities of the future and determined to repeat failures of the 
past.
  We have a real opportunity to boost American manufacturing of clean 
energy and advanced vehicles. Just as a result of the Recovery Act we 
went from producing 2 percent to 40 percent of advanced batteries. We 
cannot allow this Republican appropriations bill to reverse that 
progress and cripple American industrial competitiveness.

                          ____________________