A No-Energy Energy Bill

Press Release

A vibrant democracy depends on the competing interests of various groups that offer a different view of the future. These "factions," as Madison called them in the Federalist Papers, when pitted against each other force some level of give and take. This, Madison argued, would serve as a check or a balance that would protect the nation.

Of course, this requires some level of compromise from time to time. Unfortunately, the give and take and compromise has been entirely left out of the energy debate in Congress, to the detriment of the American people.

Our nation runs on energy. Our economy, indeed our way of life, depends to a great extent on our ability to create energy at relatively affordable prices. For centuries now, much of that energy has come from various forms of fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas. These pollute the atmosphere, and some are getting more expensive to obtain.

Renewable and alternative energies need to play a central role in our energy future. We must get to a place where wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, nuclear and other alternative energies power our society, while keeping our skies clean and clear. However, these sources are not yet ready to take over and power our whole economy. We need to use the oil and gas we have right here at home as a bridge until that day comes.

Unfortunately, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Democrats do not seem to understand this reality. So, in an effort to quell the public's increasingly loud call for action on the issue, they have offered up a piece of legislation that represents election year politicking at its worst. This bill, which was railroaded through the House, allows for offshore drilling—something that has become increasingly popular in opinion polls with the high price of gas. But it would also make the exploration contingent on states' approval while barring states from sharing the revenue. This provision nearly ensures no oil exploration would happen.

In fact, this provision would keep more offshore exploration off limits than if Congress simply allowed the current ban to expire on October 1.

Additionally, the bill would supposedly accelerate oil and gas leasing in the National Petroleum Reserve of Alaska (NPRA). However, the oil and gas resources of the NPRA are far more spread out than the resources located in the adjacent Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The NPRA's oil and natural gas fields are spread over about 23 million acres compared to 1.9 million acres for ANWR. Again, if House Democrats were interested in producing more American made energy, it would make sense to use a smaller footprint to access a greater amount of resources. Instead, the provision included in their legislation amounts to an empty attempt to appear to support American made energy.

There are notable provisions not included in the bill, including anything that would fast-track the construction of new oil refineries—even if we produce more oil, we don't have the refining capacity to turn it into gasoline to power our cars. Additionally, there is nothing in the bill to cut the red tape that has kept the U.S. from building a nuclear power plant in over three decades. Nuclear power, when regulated for safety, represents a clean alternative with absolutely no emissions that can go a long way toward meeting our nation's energy needs.

Perhaps the most irresponsible part of the bill is that Speaker Pelosi did not allow Republicans the opportunity to offer their alternate legislation for a vote during the debate. The ability to offer amendments and alternatives to legislation is a long-held tradition in the House and was even a key stipulation in the vision Speaker Pelosi offered for how she would govern the House.

Instead of working in a bipartisan manner to craft energy legislation that will support investments in renewables, alternative forms of energy, conservation and efficiency, in addition to accessing more American made energy, House Democrats drafted a bill that would give the appearance that they embraced expanded American-made energy while ensuring no further production would ever occur.

No wonder the approval rating for Congress has slumped to all all-time low of just 9 percent. The American people want energy solutions. They don't care who came up with the ideas or what party claims credit. They just want Congress to do something to bring down the cost of gas and provide greater energy security to our nation. Unfortunately, the House missed a great opportunity to do just this when it considered the bill offered by Speaker Pelosi and her allies.

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