Ensign Commemorates Earth Hour

Statement

Over the weekend, Nevadans joined hundreds of millions of people around the world for Earth Hour 2009. It was an opportunity for people to turn off their light switches and express concern for the state of our environment. On the Las Vegas Strip, marquee and non-essential lighting was shut off for an hour starting at 8:30 p.m. I'm excited that so many Nevada businesses and individuals participated in this monumental event. The growing effort to lesson our impact on the environment is spreading rapidly through our communities. My own family is doing its share to make a difference, including our plan to install solar rooftop panels at our home.

Earth Hour is a testament to the power that can be harnessed when concerned citizens take action. Without the insistence of government, people around the country are coming together on behalf of a cause. Congress needs to take that energy and work in a bipartisan manner to pass meaningful legislation that will decrease our reliance on Middle Eastern oil, increase our production of American energy, and invest in a new frontier of clean and renewable energy.

Unfortunately, the President's budget takes several steps backward in uniting our country behind productive and environmentally pro-active initiatives. His "cap and tax" proposal levies an energy tax on every single American—rich and poor. That means that every time you switch on a light, turn on your stove, or drive to pick up your children at school, you are paying more to do it. On average, this means that American households will pay more than $3,000 a year to cap carbon emissions. The environmental impact of such an effort is at best debatable, but the economic burden on hardworking American families is not. Faced with a deep and painful recession, a $3,000 a year tax is not the answer.

That doesn't mean that we shouldn't take aggressive action to lessen our impact on the environment. We can produce clean energy right here in the United States. Nuclear is a perfect example of a safe, proven and clean energy that can significantly reduce our reliance on Middle Eastern oil. Coupled with renewable energy—which is clean and plentiful here in Nevada—we can reduce carbon emissions, create jobs, and allow American families to heal from this economic turmoil.

Tens of millions of Americans voluntarily turned off their lights and thought about how we can enact policy to reflect the needs of our changing environment. The worst thing we can do is take that positive energy and then tax Americans into darkness. Instead, let's power this country with the innovation and force that has always come from our desire for change.

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