See How Your Politicians Voted
Title: Energy Policy Act of 2005
Vote Smart's Synopsis:
Vote to adopt a conference report that develops an energy policy that addresses tax incentives, conservation strategies, regulatory standards, research and development programs, energy efficiency, and alternative sources of energy.
Highlights:
- Extends daylight savings time by four weeks, effective March 1, 2007; Congress reserves the right to revert back to the old schedule if reports do not show improvement in energy use (Sec. 110).
- Appropriates $1.8 billion over three years for "weatherization assistance," which provides low-income families with the means to reduce the cost of energy bills by making their homes more energy efficient (Sec. 122).
- Appropriates $15.3 billion over three years for the "Low Income Home Energy Assistance" program (Sec. 126).
- Appropriates $2.23 billion for research, development and commercial applications of renewable energy in the forms of solar power, geothermal energy, wind power and hydropower (Sec. 201).
- Authorizes the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to certify any qualified person who submits an application as the Electric Reliability Organization, to develop and enforce federal standards for a dependable electric transmission grid (Sec. 215).
- Requires the Secretary of Energy to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to its capacity of one billion gallons (Sec. 301).
- Bans drilling for oil or natural gas in or under any of the Great Lakes (Sec. 386).
- Appropriates $1.8 billion over nine years for the "Clean Coal Power Initiative" (Sec. 401).
- $220 million over 11 years to finance competitive grants as well as education and conservation programs under the newly created Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs (Sec. 502).
- Amends the Price-Anderson Act, extending it through 2025, raising nuclear power plant operators' liability from $6.3 million to $95.8 million, and increasing the maximum annual payments to $15 million from $10 million (Sec. 601-610).
- Offers up to $2 billion in "risk" support to individuals who have invested in new advanced nuclear facilities to cover costs incurred during certain construction delays (Sec. 638).
- Appropriates $1.25 billion over 10 years to finance the "Next Generation Nuclear Plant Project," a two-phase plan to research, develop and operate a prototype nuclear plant that includes a reactor capable of generating electricity, producing hydrogen, or both (Secs. 641-645).
- Appropriates $13.94 billion to the Secretary of Energy to carry out research, development and commercial activities under the Office of Science, including $1.11 billion for the "Fusion Energy Sciences" program (Sec. 971).
- Extends the availability of the renewable electricity production credit to 2008 (Sec. 1301).
- Offers tax credits on certain residential appliances, including dishwashers, clothes washers and refrigerators (Sec. 1334).
- Offers a tax credit of 10 percent of the expense incurred by home-owners who make qualified energy-efficient improvements to their homes through 2007 (Sec. 1335).
- Offers tax credits ranging from $4,000 to $40,000 (based on weight) on the purchase of new, qualified fuel cell motor vehicles (Sec. 1341).
- Requires a gradual increase of the amount of ethanol that is added to gasoline from four billion gallons in 2006 to a minimum of seven and a half billion gallons by 2012 (Sec. 1501).