Advanced Vehicle Technology Act Of 2009

Floor Speech

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Mr. COHEN. I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I would first like to commend Representative Peters and the Science and Technology Committee for sponsoring this forward-looking piece of legislation and, of course, Chairman Gordon for his outstanding work in bringing this to the floor.

For more than a century the United States has been the home to automobile innovation. This innovation made the U.S.A. the world leader in automobile production and automobile design. Cars and the United States were almost synonymous.

However in recent years the United States has fallen far behind Asian and European automakers and countries there with regard to vehicle innovation, especially when it comes to fuel efficiency. As gas prices continue to rise and American citizens become more concerned about global warming and energy security, they have responded by purchasing more fuel-efficient vehicles.

So the American car manufacturer must meet that demand to stay active and viable. Finding a safe, affordable and clean alternative to oil will not be cheap nor easy. Public and private entities will have to work cooperatively to solve this technological problem. Old-fashioned American entrepreneurship will need to be working on the cutting edge of technological advancements to keep our automobile industry alive.

From hydrogen fuel cells to electric cars, these innovators are leaving no stone unturned when it comes to finding energy solutions. So with such an array of technologies holding so much promise, we cannot afford to ignore any promising technology. With this in mind, Amendment No. 9 assures electromechanical storage technologies such as hydraulics, flywheels and compressed air storage are also allowed to be researched under this Department of Energy program.

These technologies hold tremendous promise and need to be explored as energy alternatives. For example, existing compressed air cars average more than 115 gas-equivalent miles per gallon and can reach speeds of up to 90 miles an hour. Most importantly, these cars emit almost zero carbon dioxide and only cost $2 to $3 to fill up.

Technologies such as compressed air are not yet perfect; however, with the passage of the Advanced Vehicles Technology Act, these innovative technologies can receive the funding they need to transform a novel fuel source into an energy solution of the future. Doing so will spur development throughout the country in small scientific laboratories, and one in Memphis, Bioworks, in my district might be one that engages in this, as well as in the massive grounds of General Motors, Ford, and other American manufacturing plants.

The economic competitiveness and safety of the United States depends upon the ability of American entrepreneurs to develop viable alternatives to oil. In order to ensure our future security, we must make a down payment on the future of our country by seriously investing in alternative energy research.

For these reasons, I strongly urge the passage of this amendment to the Advanced Vehicles Technology Act, which simply gives another alternative to the Department of Energy to move us into the future in a progressive and sound way.

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