Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007

ENERGY INDEPENDENCE AND SECURITY ACT OF 2007 -- (House of Representatives - December 18, 2007)

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Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. My friends, it's not very hard to understand why our country is facing an energy crisis; in fact, it's very simple. America needs more oil, gas, coal, nuclear and hydropower. We need more wind power. But Congress has refused to unlock these resources. This bill does nothing to release those resources allowed to provide us with the energy. It concentrates on corn, switchgrass, and a few hybrid cars.

My friends, oil, gas, coal, nuclear and hydropower are the backbone of this country. They supply more than 90 percent of our energy needs to fuel the world's number one economy. I would add that developing them does not raise the price of food, such as corn. There's no shortage of these energy resources in America. There is a shortage of the will to develop them. In fact, the majority leadership of this body, the last two Democrat Presidents and their allies in the environmental movement have created a false energy shortage through their constant attempts to lock up homegrown energy.

Let me give you a few examples. They want to ban all offshore oil and gas development. They oppose U.S. oil production of North America's largest onshore prospect. They stopped oil and shale development in the omnibus spending bill. They opposed coal, and even applauded when President Clinton locked up millions of tons of clean fuel in Utah. They want the tens of trillions of cubic feet of clean-burning natural gas in the Rocky Mountains locked up forever. They oppose nuclear power plants; they, being the majority party. They oppose hydroelectric power. They even want to tear down nonpolluting hydroelectric dams in the Northwest.

They want to impose high taxes on the use of energy, driving energy prices paid by your constituents to even higher than they are today. They even oppose using biomass of overgrown, unhealthy forests as a renewable fuel supply. In particular, the biofuel mandate in this bill is a direction to burn down forests and close more mills in the West.

More than half of Alaska's Federal land, and we have enormous potential for a biofuels industry; this bill stops all of that. This bill will hold Alaska to the highest standards. Alaskans would be forced to purchase the most efficient, read the most expensive, appliances. The residents of the wealthy district in San Francisco have money to buy the most efficient, expensive furnaces and air conditioners, and I would bet most of them are inclined to spend their money on them. Many Alaskans, however, cannot afford to spend the extra $200, $300, $400 for the most efficient furnaces. Under this bill, they will have to. In a survey of 100 Alaskan communities, the average price of gas is $5 a gallon.

The majority leader is playing Russian roulette with the economy. This year, every bill we've passed concerning energy is another bullet in the chamber of a gun staring point-blank at America's head, and by my count, it's already fully loaded.

This is a bad bill. It's a charade. It's a disgrace for this body to vote ``yes'' for this bill. I am urging us to vote ``no.''

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