Sanders Urges Action on his Energy Bill

Sanders urges action on his energy bill

— Rep. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., is pressuring the House leadership to let his bill promoting clean energy move to a vote, an initiative that he said would "revolutionize our energy policy."

Sanders held a news conference in his Burlington office Friday to release a letter he sent to Speaker Dennis Hastert saying that the proposal would help to reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil.

"It is critical now more than ever that the House passes legislation to dramatically reduce our dependence on oil, protect our environment, and move to clean renewable sources of energy," Sanders wrote in his letter. "The New Apollo Energy Act will do just that."

That bill, drafted by Sanders along with 39 co-sponsors, would swap a variety of tax breaks and credits given to oil companies with a series of investments in companies that are developing and creating alternative energy.

Sanders' bill would funnel federal loan guarantees and tax credits to those companies and he also would direct the federal government to make direct investments in the construction of projects, research and technology devoted to clean energy.

The bill would focus technology research on clean energy, energy efficiency, fusion energy and "ultra-deepwater and extended reach" drilling. The federal government would work with the National Laboratories, universities, and commercial industry to promote those kinds of technology.

He said the investments would pay off by permitting the United States to reduce the amount of oil it has to import. Oil consumption would drop by 600,000 barrels a day by 2010, 1.7 million barrels a day five years after that and by 3 million barrels a day in 2020.

"Without a change in current policy these are the same figures we will be importing from Iraq, Saudi Arabia and the entire Middle East," Sanders said.

An estimated 3.3 million jobs would be created if the bill were adopted, he added.

"This legislation offers real changes to revolutionize our energy policy," he said.

Vermont Public Interest Research Group Executive Director Paul Burns and Paul Comey, vice president of environmental affairs at Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, joined Sanders at his news conference to endorse the approach.

But with Republicans in control of the House, it's unlikely that Sanders' bill will advance. It currently is sitting in a subcommittee awaiting a hearing and will not move without Hastert or a member of the GOP leadership giving the word, members of Sanders' staff said.

Congress returns next week from its Memorial Day recess and the early summer is expected to be the time when legislation that will survive for this year will move.

Sanders will be leaving the House at the end of the current term. He is running for the U.S. Senate seat held by the retiring Sen. James Jeffords, I-Vt.

Sanders expects to run against wealthy businessman Richard Tarrant, although there is a primary. Retired Air Force pilot Greg Parke of Rutland also is running.

Tarrant's campaign manager Tim Lennon on Friday questioned Sanders' effectiveness in Congress.

"We all want a long term energy policy which includes alternative energy sources, but the reason Sanders isn't getting things done is because he's the least influential congressman in the Northeast," Lennon said.

He said it was time Vermont sent somebody to Washington who can get things done "instead of holding press conferences that are all talk."

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