A PLAN FOR RELIEF
Thursday, May 29th, 2008Gas in Texas has reached the $3.70 mark and is expected to continue to rise. For years, Republicans have brought forth commonsense, environmentally responsible energy policies that would provide our country with its own secure oil and gas supply, but those policies have been road blocked by Democrats in Congress, the Senate and the White House. Even now, as gas and diesel prices set record highs across the country, the Majority Leadership continually refuses to tackle this mounting problem.
The truth is simple-Congress must take action to encourage conservation and promote the research and innovation necessary to develop new energy sources and technologies. But while doing this, we must unlock new energy supplies here at home. This week Republicans in Congress unveiled an energy plan that will bring the much needed relief American families are anxious for by safely and responsibly increasing American supplies. These good reforms are the only way Americans are going to see lower prices at the pump.
I will work with my colleagues to deliver a plan that works with meaningful solutions that make our nation more energy dependent. Here is how we will do it:
First, we will increase the production of American-made energy in an environmentally-safe way by supporting actions that reduce America’s dependency on energy from unstable foreign governments and dictatorships by increasing environmentally-safe production of oil and natural gas in areas such as the arctic coastal plain and in deep ocean energy resources. We will also promote unconventional fuels such as coal-to-liquids technology and recovering our vast oil shale reserves by increasing access for environmentally responsible development of conventional and unconventional domestic oil and natural gas production, provide coal-to-liquid financing and tax incentives, and advance the commercialization of the nation’s two-trillion barrel shale oil resource, 80 percent of which occurs on government-owned land in the West. This is enough to supply all of America’s needs for over two centuries.
Second, we will promote new, clean and reliable sources of energy. We will do this by encouraging more production of environmentally-safe energy to increase the use of our vast domestic supply, reduce emissions and keep coal-dependent communities strong. We will also expand emissions-free nuclear power, including long term nuclear waste storage solutions and recycling spent fuel by providing production and investment tax credits for all new base-load electricity projects such as advanced nuclear power and clean coal. We must also allow immediate expensing for new renewable or zero emission power.
Next, we will cut the red tape and increase the supply of American-made fuel and energy. We will expedite permitting for enhanced oil recovery projects, including CO2 delivery and injection, as well as permitting for new refining capacity. We will improve environmental review and permitting to encourage the deployment of technologies which increase the efficiency of existing power plants, and we will end ill-advised policies that have led to the production of unique gasoline and diesel fuel formulations known as “boutique fuels,” which have fragmented our motor fuels distribution system and choked off supply.
Finally, this plan will encourage greater energy efficiency by offering conservation tax incentives. We will support technologies to help increase energy efficiency in all sectors of the American economy, including removing barriers that prevent businesses from upgrading their facilities with newer, more efficient energy. We will do this by making home energy efficiency upgrades tax deductible, providing incentives for home builders and homeowners to make their homes more energy efficient, offering investment expensing for industrial and commercial building efficiency upgrades, extending the residential and business solar and fuel cell investment tax credits, extending the fiber-optic distributed sunlight investment tax credit, and increasing the energy efficiency of government-owned buildings.
I am committed to a comprehensive energy reform policy that will increase the supply of American-made energy, improve energy efficiency, and encourage investment in groundbreaking research in advanced alternative and renewable energy technologies. With 21st Century technologies and the strictest standards in the world, American can and must produce more of our own energy and protect the environment at the same time. That is the change Americans deserve. I call on my Democratic colleagues to work with Republicans and pass these commonsense solutions.