[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Pages 13384-13385]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           ENERGY EFFICIENCY

  Ms. LANDRIEU. I wish to move to another subject. I wish to offer at 
this time two amendments to the underlying bill that we are trying to 
debate, which is a very important bill on energy efficiency. I know we 
cannot debate any amendments, but I think I can offer two amendments.
  I wish to tell my colleagues, the first I am offering with Senator 
Wicker and Senator Pryor. It would ensure that the Green Building 
Rating System, which is adopted by GSA currently, and new ones under 
this bill that are put forth by Senator Shaheen and Senator Portman--I 
support the bill--do not put at a disadvantage the materials that meet 
the new standard of energy efficiency in the underlying bill.
  There was some question about the way the bill was initially worded 
when it came out of the Energy Committee that it would disqualify some 
domestic materials that meet the energy efficient standards from being 
included.

[[Page 13385]]

This would have a very devastating effect on our lumber and forestry 
industry, as well as others. I will send that amendment to the desk 
when I am able and hope that we will get through this skirmish over 
health care and get to some very important amendments that will help us 
create jobs in America, Louisiana, and help our industries.
  Secondly, I wish to speak about an amendment Senator Wicker and I 
will offer that would ensure that small companies are excused from the 
requirements to submit their products for expensive third-party testing 
to achieve ENERGY STAR certification.
  This is really a small business issue. I think this is acceptable to 
all parties. I am not sure there is any opposition, actually, to either 
one of these amendments, which is good. We have worked very hard with 
the parties who might have a different view to see if we can find some 
common ground, and I think we have.
  I have spoken about these amendments which I will submit for the 
Record when possible, and I hope we can get to the bill of Senator 
Shaheen and Senator Portman. They have worked very hard, and they have 
built a great coalition.
  Again, this is a bill that could create many jobs and opportunities 
for our people. While there are a lot of Members talking about how so-
and-so should focus on jobs and he or she should do this or that, we 
have a bill whose essence is to create very good jobs in America and to 
save us energy costs and to reduce costs to taxpayers and consumers.
  I believe this bill was voted unanimously out of the energy committee 
and, if not, it had overwhelming support from Republicans and 
Democrats. Ron Wyden, the chairman our committee, who was a very able 
and centrist leader on these matters, has worked very hard. I am very 
familiar with the benefits of this bill. I am sorry it has become 
caught up in the politics of health care, but it is important that we 
get to this Energy bill.
  It is most important that the House of Representatives fix a terrible 
thing for Louisiana which happened just a few hours ago when they 
stripped, now for the 20th year in a row, a project that has been 
certified, stamped, sealed, and approved by the Corps of Engineers. For 
whatever reason they did this, I do not know. I hope they will fix it.
  I yield the floor.

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