[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 33 (Thursday, February 27, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1236-S1237]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. INHOFE (for himself and Mr. Levin):
  S. 2065. A bill to create incentives for the development of 
alternative fuel vehicles; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, today I join with Senator Inhofe to 
introduce a bill to incentivize the production and use of alternative 
fuel vehicles, including natural gas vehicles, NGVs, and plug-in-
electric hybrids. Encouraging the production of alternative fuel 
vehicles will help to diversify our fuel mix, while reducing our 
reliance on imported oil and also reducing carbon emissions. In the 
U.S. alone, NGVs offset the use of nearly 360 million gallons of 
gasoline in 2011. We hope our bill will help increase that number.
  The moment is right to capitalize on the abundance of domestically 
sourced natural gas. Already, American manufacturers have benefited 
from the availability of domestically produced natural gas, reducing 
the cost of US-based production and contributing to the return of 
manufacturing to the United States. If we can expand the use of natural 
gas to fuel our vehicles, then American consumers can also benefit from 
this cleaner and cheaper domestic fuel.
  Michigan has become a leading innovator in advanced alternative fuel 
vehicles and is revolutionizing our transportation sector. As 
automakers in Michigan and elsewhere manufacture NGVs they face the 
dilemma often encountered when introducing an alternative fueled 
vehicle: what will come first, the NGV infrastructure or the vehicle 
itself? This is the classic chicken and egg question. Ethanol, Diesel 
and electric vehicles all faced this challenge when first introduced. 
Our bill will allow Michigan to continue to innovate and harness the 
power and benefits that domestically sourced alternative fuels have to 
offer this country.
  The benefits of expanding the number of natural gas and alternative 
fuel vehicles on our roads are numerous. Up to 90 percent of the 
natural gas used in the United States comes from the United States. We 
need to tap into this domestic resource for our transportation needs 
and take an aggressive approach to reducing our dependence on foreign 
oil. Consumers should also have more choice and flexibility when it 
comes to fueling their vehicles. This bill allows for that. At the 
moment natural gas is about half the price of gasoline. Consumers 
should be able to benefit from these reduced prices. Furthermore, 
vehicles running on natural gas have 20-30 percent less CO2 
tailpipe emissions than gasoline fueled vehicles. Because natural gas 
burns cleaner, it increases the life of the car. It has no lead or 
benzene or other chemicals that break down auto parts or dilute 
lubricants.
  These are all desirable reasons to encourage more NGV production. The 
use of natural gas vehicles is expanding among private fleets used by 
airports and transit agencies where refueling infrastructure is 
available. However, the chicken and egg dilemma is slowing the adoption 
of both dedicated and bi-fuel natural gas vehicles among light-duty 
passenger vehicles.
  Our legislation would incentivize both production and consumer demand 
for alternative fuel vehicles such as natural gas vehicles and plug-in 
electric hybrids by expanding regulatory incentives. It would also 
provide consumers with an added incentive to drive natural gas vehicles 
by giving them access to high occupancy vehicle, HOV, lanes. Giving 
consumers an additional benefit such as HOV access could help increase 
demand for these vehicles and the fueling stations that are necessary 
to support them.
  The President outlined in his State of the Union his goal to achieve 
energy independence through the use of alternative fuels. He 
specifically mentioned natural gas as the bridge fuel that can

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grow our economy, create jobs for the middle class, and reduce carbon 
pollution. I am pleased to introduce legislation today that takes a 
step toward meeting that goal.

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