• Home
• About Amy
• Serving Minnesotans
• About Minnesota
• Issues/ Legislation
• Media Center
• Contact Amy
• FAQ

Sign Up for Our E-Newsletter

Homegrown Energy

The rising price of energy for our homes, our vehicles, and our businesses is one of the top issues affecting the family checkbook.

The simple truth is that our country has been headed down the wrong energy path. Our current path has led to high electricity and gas prices. These prices not only hurt our families, they also hurt our businesses and our economy. Our dependence on foreign oil threatens our national security. And we now know that our current energy path is causing dramatic changes to our earth's climate.

Americans need us to chart a new energy path - one that represents smart energy policy, good economic policy, and a healthy environmental policy. I want to help lead our nation down that path to a better, cleaner and more secure energy future. This path must put us on a fast track to energy independence, and create new opportunities for technological innovation and economic development.

Our energy future must be based on a combination of renewable energy resources, advanced clean-energy technology and high-efficiency vehicles, buildings and appliances, along with safe nuclear energy and expanding domestic production of fuels. I believe this is a great opportunity both for meeting our nation's energy demands and for promoting economic development in rural America. This approach would strengthen our national security, protect our environment and provide the foundation for continued economic prosperity.

I believe that science and innovation will be the key to creating this new energy future. And, in creating and expanding new energy sources, we have the opportunity to develop revolutionary new technologies and create whole new industries and jobs in Minnesota and across the nation.

I serve on the Environment and Public Works Committee, Agriculture Committee, Commerce Committee, and the Joint Economic Committee -- all of which deal with energy issues, allowing me to champion solutions on the front line that are good for our state and our country.

In Minnesota, we can spearhead the effort -- because we have the fields to grow the fuel that will keep our nation moving; we have the wind energy to propel our economy forward; and we have the talent and know-how to develop the new technologies to make it happen. I want us to have an energy policy that benefits the farmers and workers of the Midwest instead of the oil cartels of the Mideast.

As Minnesota's U.S. Senator, I've been working to reduce our country's dependence on imported oil and move us forward to the next generation of clean, homegrown energy. I have worked to:

• Champion new fuel efficiency standards. I was part of a bi-partisan group of Senators who worked to craft the first increase to CAFE standards since the 1970's. The new standards will increase the fuel efficiency of cars by more than 40 percent by 2020, saving consumers money at the pump - studies say these vehicles can save consumers up to $1,000 a year and reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
• Develop the next generation of energy-saving technologies. As a member of the Commerce Committee, I worked on the 2007 Energy Bill, which included incentives for the development of new, more efficient consumer technologies. From the next generation of hybrid and plug-in vehicles, to higher efficiency standards for appliances, and incentives for the design and construction of high-performance energy-efficient buildings, these incentives are designed to lower fuel and energy bills and save consumers money. Additionally, I introduced the American Renewable Energy Act (S. 2642), which among other things would provide over $2,500 in tax credits for the purchase of fuel-efficient, plug-in hybrid cars and trucks and up to a $15,000 tax credit for plug-in hybrid semi-trucks. I also twice supported passage of the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act (H.R. 6049), which includes tax credits of $3,000 or more toward the purchase of fuel-efficient, plug-in hybrid vehicles. I will continue to push for passage of both bills in order to make hybrid technology more accessible and affordable.
• Stop speculation that drives up consumer energy prices. One of the steps to ensure that energy prices remain affordable for consumers is putting a stop to speculation in the market, which has artificially inflated oil prices over the last year. The oil markets need a "cop on the beat" to return some order and fairness. That is why I cosponsored legislation (S.3139, the Increasing Transparency and Accountability in Oil Prices Act) to strengthen the resources and authority of the U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission, which is responsible for making sure our energy markets function honestly and efficiently, closing loopholes that currently allow traders to evade government oversight. Along with Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), I have also called for the U.S. Justice Department to create an Oil and Gas Fraud Task Force to investigate and prosecute illegal activity such as price manipulation.
• Bring down consumer prices by suspending filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. With oil prices reaching record highs this past year, my colleagues and I successfully urged the President to halt additions to the SPR, which was artificially inflating the price of oil by reducing the amount of oil on the market. Like we've done more than a dozen times when oil prices threatened the stability of our economy, I believe we should exchange or loan light crude oil from the SPR for later payments of heavy crude oil to the SPR. In July, I sponsored an amendment to help immediately lower oil and gas prices for consumers by implementing the sale of 70 million barrels of light crude oil from the SPR.
• Led a bipartisan group calling for increased funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program to save consumers money on home energy costs. According to the National Association for State Community Services Programs, for every dollar spent, the Weatherization Assistance Program returns $2.72 in energy and non-energy benefits over the life of the weatherized home. Additionally, I co-sponsored the Warm in Winter and Cool in Summer Act, which would provide additional funds for home energy assistance (LIHEAP) programs.
• Expand the market for homegrown biofuels. As a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, I worked to ensure that the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 included provisions requiring an increase in biofuel production by 2022 -- requiring that 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels be used by the year 2022, starting with 8.5 billion gallons by 2008. The current requirement is 7.5 billion gallons by 2012, a goal the country is expected to exceed. The legislation includes research on ethanol pipelines, quality standards for biodiesel, and loan guarantees for advanced biofuels facilities.
• Help our farmers move to the next generation of farm-based biofuels. On the Agriculture Committee I took the lead on efforts to advance the nation to a new group of biofuels - cellulosic ethanol made from dedicated energy crops like prairie grass and alfalfa, and from agricultural residues and wood chips. Working with Senators Tom Harkin of Iowa and Kent Conrad of North Dakota, I introduced S. 1403, the Farm-to-Fuel Investment Act, which offers incentives to farmers to grow dedicated energy crops on marginal farmland. This initiative was eventually included in the Energy Title of the 2008 Farm Bill and became law in May of 2008. Cellulosic ethanol made from native, perennial prairie grasses has the potential to provide our country with carbon-neutral motor fuel, while protecting our soil and water quality and providing wildlife habitat.
• Make ethanol and biodiesel available to more drivers. I have fought successfully in the Senate to expand the availability of renewable fuels all over the country to provide additional markets for Minnesota's producers. The Energy Independence and Security Act, which was enacted in December of 2007, includes $200 million annually to install ethanol and biodiesel pumps in gas stations across the country. In addition, my "Right to Retail Renewable Fuels" amendment will put a stop to oil company tactics used to block the sale of renewable fuels at their franchise gas stations.
• Find a bipartisan solution to our energy crisis. Creating our new energy future is going to require all Americans to join together to bring about change -- which is why I joined a bipartisan group of Senators that supported a proposal to help reduce our dependence on foreign oil, invest in homegrown sources of energy and strengthen our economy.

But there is still much more work to be done to increase our energy independence and promote the new energy economy. To address the environmental challenges and seize the economic opportunities, these are my priorities:

• Create stable incentives for the private sector to invest in renewable energy. I introduced the American Renewable Energy Act, which would enhance and extend federal tax incentives that encourage private investment in renewable energy. The federal Production Tax Credit, which encourages investment in wind power, solar energy and other forms of homegrown energy, has never won a permanent place in our tax code. This creates a "green light, red light" problem for the private sector, causing investment in wind and solar power to sharply drop whenever the tax credit is in danger of expiring. The American Renewable Energy Act would create the stable economic horizon investors need if they are to finance the steady growth of this promising industry.
• Expand demand for producers of renewable energy. The American Renewable Energy Act also would set a national renewable energy standard, requiring utilities to obtain 20 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by the year 2025. This provision is modeled after Minnesota's "25 by 25" law, which requires that 25 percent of electricity come from renewable sources by 2025. Minnesota's strong leadership demonstrates that, far from hurting an economy, well-designed policies can actually stimulate innovation and investment leading to new economic growth. States like Minnesota have been leading the way, but that is no excuse for inaction by the federal government.
• Address the challenge of global climate change by reducing the use of carbon fuels and carbon emissions. On May 14, 2007, I introduced the National Greenhouse Gas Registry Act, bipartisan legislation to create a comprehensive and uniform method of tracking greenhouse gas emissions by major industries - because you can't solve a problem if you can't measure it. The carbon registry became the first title of the Climate Security Act of 2008, a landmark, bipartisan piece of legislation that would establish a cap-and-trade system to efficiently reduce greenhouse gas emissions. By creating financial incentives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, a cap-and-trade system would also spur investment in clean, alternative energy sources and promote the creation of new jobs and technologies.