[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 23471-23472]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


          THE AMERICAN ENERGY, AMERICAN INNOVATION ACT OF 2008

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 29, 2008

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Madam Speaker, I rise today to introduce a 
bill reflecting my comprehensive energy plan, the ``American Energy, 
American Innovation'' Act of 2008. This bill reflects my effort to 
really put everything on the table to address rising energy prices, our 
dependence on foreign oil, and our need to respond to the climate 
change challenge.
  While in Colorado in August, I stood with Senator Salazar to embrace 
the bipartisan process and principles of the so-called Gang of 10--now 
Gang of 20--energy proposal. But I believe that this proposal doesn't 
go far enough and that's why I've spent the last 2 months working on 
this ``American Energy, American Innovation'' plan.
  Since then, while the Senate group has doubled in size, indicating 
the strong desire in Congress to achieve a compromise on energy 
legislation, the Senators have yet to introduce the legislation that 
they outlined in their principles.
  And last week, the House passed a comprehensive energy bill (H.R. 
6899) that includes an even stronger step towards a compromise, with 
provisions that will open up more of the Outer Continental Shelf to 
drilling and establish a national renewable electricity standard to 
mandate that 15 percent of our electricity be produced from renewable 
energy by 2020.
  Along with these two provisions, that bill included several others 
from my energy plan and I voted for it.
  However, we have not yet achieved an agreement in Congress on a 
compromise that can move through both bodies and get to the President's 
desk. And, building upon the Gang of 20 proposal and H.R. 6899, I think 
my bill provides the next step in that process. That is why I am 
introducing this bill today, which I do not view as a final product, 
but more a step to further discussion on our energy policy and keep 
faith with the promise that I made to Coloradans in August.
  My bill involves developing energy of all kinds--oil, gas, wind, 
solar, biofuels, nuclear. It's a broad and pragmatic approach to solve 
our critical energy challenge. It reaches out to new partners and 
promotes new solutions. And my bill includes both short- and long-term 
efforts to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, lower energy prices, 
and protect our environment.
  First, to deal with immediate problems with energy prices, my bill 
includes a provision bipartisan effort that will cut down on the 
manipulation of oil prices and increase transparency and oversight of 
the commodity markets. Estimates vary as to how much speculative 
trading on futures markets--as well as unscrupulous market 
manipulation--affects the cost of oil. Some estimates say as much as 
$30 to $60 per barrel of oil can be attributed to unfair speculative 
market practices.
  This provision will bring transparency to the commodities and futures 
market by implementing Commodity Futures Trading Commission, CFTC, 
recommendations to break out index fund and other data in energy and 
agricultural markets, and require detailed reporting from index traders 
and swap dealers. This is important because speculators have come up 
with elaborate and tricky derivatives that obscure the true value of 
commodities. It will curb excessive speculation by tightening 
regulation of foreign boards of trade that offer futures contracts in 
the U.S., and it will give the CFTC the authority and the means to 
crack down on manipulation in the energy market.
  It will help us address gas prices in the short term by including a 
provision to release additional oil from the Strategic Petroleum 
Reserve, SPR. This release would provide for a quick increase in the 
supply of petroleum in our consumer market and so could reduce the 
likelihood of further short-term increases in the price of gasoline and 
other refined products. And, it will do this in a way that is both 
cost-effective and protective of our national-security interests.
  Under the bill, the Energy Department, DOE, would sell at least 20 
million barrels of light grade oil now stored in the Strategic 
Petroleum Reserve, and sales would continue for 6 months or until 70 
million barrels have been sold, whichever comes first. But the draw-
down would not be permanent because the bill would require the Energy 
Department to acquire, through purchase (using money from the sales) or 
exchange, heavy grade petroleum for storage in the strategic reserve, 
to replace the light grade petroleum that would be sold.
  Right now, slightly more than 700 million barrels of oil are stored 
in the strategic reserve--so the amount to be sold under the bill would 
be only about 10 percent of the amount on hand.
  Importantly, the bill specifies that the amount of oil stored in the 
strategic reserve could not drop below 90 percent of the amount stored 
when the bill is enacted. The most recent data I have seen indicate 
that the reserve is currently filled nearly to capacity, so the bill 
will not cause a significant reduction in the amount stored.
  But, Madam Speaker, this bill recognizes that short-term solutions 
and fixing past problems are not ``silver bullets'' for the factors 
that have led to the current high price of oil and products such as 
gasoline that are made from oil. We need long-term solutions as well.
  First, we need to do all we can to move towards ending dependence on 
foreign oil and my bill creates a National Commission on Energy 
Independence to study technical obstacles and policy barriers and make 
recommendations on how to achieve this goal.
  This bill also includes opening up new areas of the Outer Continental 
Shelf, OCS, to oil and gas drilling. Specifically, the bill would end 
the current moratorium on OCS drilling and would permit leasing between 
50 and 100 miles offshore if a State ``opts-in'' to allow it off of 
their coast, while providing protection for environmentally sensitive 
areas. I think this strikes a responsible balance between adding more 
drilling offshore and respecting State concerns--States should have a 
say about drilling activity affecting their beaches, lands and 
resources.
  A separate provision in the bill deals with Federal lands that have 
been leased for energy exploration and development under the Mineral 
Leasing Act but where such activities have not yet occurred. While it 
is important to understand the reality that oil and gas exploration is 
a complicated commercial and scientific enterprise involving efforts 
not easily fitting within strict regulatory timelines, I think that 
this is a reasonable response to current conditions. In essence, it 
would bar the current holders of federal mineral leases--whether for 
onshore or offshore areas--from obtaining additional leases unless they 
are able to show that they are ``diligently developing'' the leases 
they already hold. The Secretary of the Interior would be responsible 
for spelling out in regulations exactly what would be needed to show 
such ``due diligence.''
  But we must reach beyond oil and gas. My bill includes provisions to 
advance clean coal technology, including carbon capture and 
sequestration technology. And I believe that nuclear energy will 
continue to be an important part of our energy portfolio, so we must 
move forward on building new nuclear energy facilities. My bill will 
help streamline the licensing process for these new plants and will 
give the Nuclear Regulatory Commission additional staff to ensure that 
these facilities are safe and secure.
  As co-chair of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus, I 
understand the important role that both renewable energy and energy 
efficiency will play in meeting our energy needs. My bill also includes 
my proposal for a Renewable Electricity Standard--just like the one 
that has been so successful in Colorado. Under my plan, by the year 
2020, utility companies will be producing at least 20 percent of our 
electricity from American-made renewable sources like wind and solar.
  My bill also includes extension of critical renewable energy tax 
credits. The Production Tax Credit, PTC, in particular has been 
instrumental in promoting the creation of a renewable energy industry. 
An extended PTC will provide more market certainty and we must have an 
extension of this key tax credit before the current credit expires at 
the end of 2008. My bill extends the PTC for 4 years.

[[Page 23472]]

  The bill also authorizes new clean renewable energy bonds, CREBS, for 
public power providers and electric cooperatives. This is a critical 
tool, especially for Colorado's rural co-ops and municipal utilities.
  Of course, the cheapest kilowatt of energy is the one we don't use 
and energy efficiency also has a key role in addressing our energy 
needs. This bill will provide incentives for smart grid systems, as 
well as for energy efficient buildings. And it includes new energy 
efficiency standards for appliances.
  Transportation is another area where we can do more to improve our 
efficiency. And my bill will move us forward by requiring that all new 
vehicles achieve 35 miles per gallon by 2015 and 50 miles per gallon by 
2030. It also includes additional incentives for Americans to purchase 
high efficiency vehicles and for manufacturers to produce many vehicles 
that use alternative fuels.
  Americans want fuel choice and my bill will require 50 percent of all 
new vehicles to be capable of burning various biofuels (in addition to 
gasoline) by 2012 and 80 percent by 2015.
  We need additional incentives for fuel efficiency vehicles. It also 
includes funding for research and development focused on the major 
technological barriers to alternative fuel vehicles, such as advanced 
batteries, to develop the next generation vehicles. And it provides 
incentives for Americans to purchase these new vehicles that use 
alternative fuels or are more efficient.
  And we must pay for this new energy policy. My bill does that by 
ending unneeded tax breaks for the oil and gas industry and closing tax 
loopholes.
  In conclusion, let me again emphasize that we must all work together 
and bring everything to the table to address our energy challenge. This 
bill is a good draft to start with and I will continue to work with my 
colleagues to enact a comprehensive energy policy to reduce our 
dependence on foreign oil, lower gas prices, and protect our 
environment.

                          ____________________