Providing For Consideration Of H.R. 5019, Home Star Energy Retrofit Act Of 2010

Floor Speech

Providing For Consideration Of H.R. 5019, Home Star Energy Retrofit Act Of 2010

Ms. MATSUI. Madam Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 1329 and ask for its immediate consideration.

The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

H. Res. 1329

Resolved, That at any time after the adoption of this resolution the Speaker may, pursuant to clause 2(b) of rule XVIII, declare the House resolved into the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union for consideration of the bill (H.R. 5019) to provide for the establishment of the Home Star Retrofit Rebate Program, and for other purposes. The first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule XXI. General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed one hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce. After general debate the bill shall be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule. It shall be in order to consider as an original bill for the purpose of amendment under the five-minute rule the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on Energy and Commerce now printed in the bill. The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered as read. All points of order against the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute are waived except those arising under clause 10 of rule XXI. Notwithstanding clause 11 of rule XVIII, no amendment to the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be in order except those printed in the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution. Each such amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question. All points of order against such amendments are waived except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule XXI. At the conclusion of consideration of the bill for amendment the Committee shall rise and report the bill to the House with such amendments as may have been adopted. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to final passage without intervening motion except one motion to recommit with or without instructions.

Sec. 2. The Chair may entertain a motion that the Committee rise only if offered by the chair of the Committee on Energy and Commerce or his designee. The Chair may not entertain a motion to strike out the enacting words of the bill (as described in clause 9 of rule XVIII).

The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from California is recognized for 1 hour.

Ms. MATSUI. Madam Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions). All time yielded during consideration of the rule is for debate only.

GENERAL LEAVE

Ms. MATSUI. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to insert extraneous materials into the Record.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentlewoman from California?

There was no objection.

Ms. MATSUI. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, House Resolution 1329 provides a structured rule for consideration of H.R. 5019, the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act. The rule waives all points of order against consideration of the bill, except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule XXI, and provides that the bill be considered as read.

The rule waives all points of order against the bill itself. The rule makes in order the eight amendments printed in the Rules Committee report and waives all points of order against those amendments except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule XXI. The rule provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions.

The rule provides that the Chair may entertain a motion that the Committee rise only if offered by the chair of the Committee on Energy and Commerce or a designee. The Chair may not entertain a motion to strike out the enacting words of the bill.

Madam Speaker, I rise this morning in strong support of the rule for the Home Energy Retrofit Act and the underlying bipartisan legislation.

I would like to applaud Chairman Waxman, Representative Welch, Representative Ehlers, and my fellow colleagues on the Energy and Commerce Committee for their hard work on bringing this important bill to the floor today.

Madam Speaker, as our Nation moves toward a more energy-efficient economy, it is critical that we adopt policies that enable us to become the world leader in promoting smart energy use and manufacturing energy-efficient products.

As our Nation continues its economic recovery, we must continue to focus on job creation. By increasing energy efficiency, we will not only create jobs and incentivize the emerging clean technology industry but also reduce carbon pollution and cut costs for customers.

H.R. 5019 would increase residential efficiency and create almost 170,000 jobs nationwide, thereby reducing the current 25 percent unemployment rate in the construction sector. Specifically, it would authorize a Silver Star rebate program, which would allow homeowners to buy and install more affordable energy-efficient products. The bill would do this by providing rebates of up to $1,500 for the installation of energy-efficient improvements, including upgraded installation, duct sealing replacements, and installation of storm windows and energy-saving doors.

This legislation would also authorize the Gold Star rebate program, which would provide rebates of up to $3,000 to those who make their entire homes at least 20 percent more energy efficient. As a result, the bill will have a meaningful long-term impact on energy use in communities across our country.

Recent estimates indicate that more than 3 million families would participate in a program like this. Such a participation rate would save these families $9.2 billion on their energy bills over the next 10 years, or the power equivalent of 6.8 million gallons of heating oil.

Madam Speaker, my hometown of Sacramento is poised to be a national leader in clean tech and energy efficiency. Sacramento has received over $200 million in energy efficiency and clean technology grants through the Recovery Act.

H.R. 5019 would build on the roughly $11.8 million in Recovery Act investments that have already been delivered to Sacramento to support energy audits and energy efficiency retrofits in residential and commercial buildings. These allocations include $7.8 million in Weatherization Assistance Program funding, $19.9 million for the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, $16.6 million in municipal financing to Sacramento County.

Madam Speaker, it is clear that the Home Star bill is in keeping with our Nation's commitment to improve the quality of our air, reduce our carbon footprint, lower families' energy bills, and create green jobs. These are all goals that my district has embraced.

Like many areas of the country, Sacramento has demonstrated great leadership on energy efficiency and clean technology. I have been organizing an effort in the Sacramento region to ensure coordination and to advance the energy efficiency and clean-tech industry.

It is imperative that we make energy-efficient products a brand that more and more Americans will purchase. We are lagging behind China and Germany in producing and exporting clean energy products, and that is simply unacceptable.

That is why I recently introduced H.R. 5616, legislation to boost clean-technology exports from the United States. The Home Star Energy Retrofit Act would further expand the market for energy-efficient products.

Madam Speaker, I again applaud Chairman Waxman's efforts to bring this bill before the full House today. As our economic recovery continues, it is important that we continue to support the Home Star program and other job creation proposals. H.R. 5019 does not represent the end of our work, but reflects another critical step forward for the American people and for our environment.

I thereby urge my colleagues to support the rule and the underlying legislation.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SESSIONS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I thank the gentlewoman from California for the extension of the time, my friend from the Rules Committee, whom I enjoy working with very much.

Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to this rule and the underlying bill.

Yesterday in the Rules Committee, the Democrat majority once again shut out good Republican ideas while rolling 15 Democratic amendments into the manager's amendment. These were 15 Democrat requests to add into the bill, and the Rules Committee saw fit to get that done for those Members of the Democratic Party. This is not the way to have an open, honest Congress, as our Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, promised in 2007.

Madam Speaker, what Republicans are going to talk about today is a number of issues, but perhaps key among them is the priority items that are on this floor today that is about more spending, more deficit spending, and against the ideas that this Speaker and the Democratic majority have talked about, about paying for bills.

I think what we are going to learn today, and as we move forward, is the Democratic Party is having problems making a decision about how they will pay for these bills because we have had so much massive spending, so many new programs, that this majority is incapable of setting any priorities. In other words, if you want something else, the public was sold, that the Democrats would be open to taking it from somewhere else and constantly making prioritization. In fact, that's not true. What it's all about is just adding in more spending and more debt without regard for making tough decisions.

I disagree with that. I think it's a bad policy. I think if you say you are going to require bills to be paid for under PAYGO, you should do that. Once again today we see where that is not true with another bill on the floor that is about spending more money. One hundred percent deficit spending in this bill.

Today I am also going to discuss other issues. And it's really about the bill. This bill is too costly. It raises serious questions about the Department of Energy's ability to effectively implement this program. And it will allow the Federal Government to pick winners and losers in the private sector while all of these companies are trying to take care of making us more efficient, but then picking the winners and losers.

H.R. 5019 would authorize $6.6 billion for what I am going to call a cash for caulkers program, $6.6 billion of new deficit spending. This bill would provide tax rebates to participating contractors and vendors who would perform qualifying energy-saving measures that meet efficiency and insulation targets in Federal standards. That's a whole lot of words for a program that in essence is too expensive, unnecessary, and I believe a waste of taxpayer dollars, especially at a time when growing deficits are causing this country to have failing markets and confidence in this government.

Republicans strongly support legislation that promotes effective energy efficiency. But 150,000 jobs, as are being talked about, for $6.6 billion on the back of the American taxpayer is not a good deal. It's not a fair trade. And to that point, the Democrats on the Rules Committee all voted against allowing my colleague Mr. Latta, the gentleman from Ohio, from even offering his amendment on the House floor today, which would have suspended the provisions of this bill if it added to the Federal deficit. This majority doesn't even want to have a conversation about controlling spending. And that's why they will continue to shut out Republican Members as they come to the Rules Committee with wise, prudent, and conservative ideas.

This 2-year program will be administered through the Department of Energy, which has already proven to be a terrible manager of the $4.7 billion from the economic stimulus weatherization program in which only 30,297 homes have been weatherized, about 5 percent of the stated overall goal of more than 600,000. These are all, I am sure, great ideas and lofty goals, but it's taxpayer spending, taxpayer money, and more deficit spending.

The Home Star Energy Retrofit Program will undoubtedly experience the
same administrative problems, implementation problems, and oversight problem for the Department of Energy. What a shame we just didn't give it directly to consumers rather than creating a program that then must be administered following Federal standards, Federal rules, and more and more and more participation from Washington, D.C. Allowing the Federal Government to get bigger and bloated and to control this process is not an efficient way to run this government or spend the American people's tax dollars.

Additionally, this legislation is not technology-neutral. It is not the role, I believe, of the Federal Government to pick winners and losers in the private sector, yet that's exactly what this bill does. This legislation lists 13 energy-saving measures that qualify for rebates of varying dollar amounts. That's right, we are going to tell people exactly how to do this and what qualifies.

There are many energy products that were left off the list or that will not qualify because of what are considered technical requirements. These are so numerous that we simply cannot effectively have a good program. It should be about effectiveness, saving energy, and allowing a consumer to be engaged in making these decisions so that we assure that the real cost and the delivery of that product was known and understood by the consumer, not just ordering something that came from the Federal Government, having somebody show up at your door, and then being reimbursed by the Federal Government, with the consumer being left out in the cold rather than a demand about what they were after and knowing what their needs are.

Over a year ago, Speaker Pelosi and the President promised that unemployment would not reach 8 percent or above. Since that time, 4 million Americans have lost their job. And that was a promise. We have now reached a 10.2 percent record unemployment rate, and continue to hover well over that promised 8 percent figure.

Madam Speaker, I believe the American people understand what this change has meant. It has meant a bigger Federal Government, record spending, and incredibly high deficits for as far as the eye can see and over the horizon. This is another example of the kind of political agenda that adds to that of the Speaker and the President that will, if all implemented, net lose over 10 million American jobs. Losing 10 million American jobs from a political agenda is a problem to the Republican Party.

We believe that the ability to make progress and work here in Congress for the best effort of the American people in the creation of jobs, not net loss of 10 million jobs, should be what this Congress should be focused on. You see, Madam Speaker, we think that America should be the employer nation. We believe that America has always led the way, the leader in the world to making sure we are competitive, and to make sure that we have a smaller, more efficient Federal Government, with unlimited opportunity for freedom for citizens back home. This bill effectively takes the citizenry, the consumer, out of the equation and puts the Federal Government central not only in people's lives, but central in paying the bill.

We should work with the investor and the free enterprise system. That is what has made us the global leader for our grandparents, our parents, and this current generation. We only have unemployment and this horrible high debt because of the political considerations of the Democratic Party and their agenda. And the Republican Party is on record again today as saying enough is enough.

The national debt continues to grow rapidly towards $13 trillion, yet our Democrat majority friends are spending billions of more dollars again today on an excessive program that sets burdensome technical requirements, picks private sector winners and losers, and hands the reins over to the Department of Energy to dole out the funds as it sees fit. Shuttling our responsibility, not allowing the amendments in the Rules Committee for commonsense legislation, rolling 15 Democrat amendments into the manager's amendment, and a $6.6 billion cost that will come directly from deficit spending, which means we have to go borrow and once again go to the world or the Chinese or others to say ``please help us'' is a bad way to run this business.

Madam Speaker, it is obvious to me that the political agenda is more that the Democrats want than the commonsense attributes of saying, enough is enough, let's know what we're doing.

So I am going to urge a ``no'' vote. I am going to urge a ``no'' vote on the rule and a ``no'' vote on the underlying legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. MATSUI. Madam Speaker, before I yield to my next speaker I just want to say the bill before us today is a strict authorization bill. There is no direct spending contained in it. CBO has said it will not add to the deficit because any money which is spent under the Home Star Program will have to be appropriated through separate legislation. This is regular order in the purest sense of the term: authorize first, appropriate later.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Sutton), a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee.

Ms. SUTTON. Madam Speaker, I thank Representative Matsui for yielding the time and for her leadership.

I rise today in strong support of the underlying bill, H.R. 5019, the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act, and I want to congratulate and thank Representative PETER WELCH for his leadership in bringing us to this place.

This is a timely, smart, commonsense bill that will achieve multiple goals. Home Star will help our workers, help our economy, and our environment. Make no mistake, Madam Speaker, this is a jobs bill. And jobs are the highest of high priorities. It's estimated that the Home Star Program will create 168,000 good-paying construction, manufacturing, and retail jobs. And these are jobs that cannot be shipped overseas.

Home Star will help kick-start the construction industry, which has been one of the hardest hit industries during this economic recession. Today more than one in four construction workers remain unemployed. And today those in this Chamber have the chance to vote to change that. Home Star will also stimulate domestic manufacturing and grow jobs, which will strengthen our economy and strengthen our Nation.

There are sustainable building solution companies in my district and across this country that are ready and waiting for the Home Star initiative, employers who are ready to ramp up production, ready to put people back to work. And the positive ripple effects will be felt throughout the retail and distribution sectors.

Home Star will also help millions of families lower energy bills. Improving energy efficiency is one of the easiest, most cost-effective ways for homeowners to reduce energy waste. And Home Star will improve our environment, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and enhance our national security. Energy efficiency improvements will create jobs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Household energy accounts for more than one-fifth of U.S. carbon emissions. And as we proved with the bipartisan, let me stress bipartisan and successful Cash for Clunkers program, it doesn't have to be jobs or the environment. It can be jobs and the environment. Home Star enjoys broad national support from business leaders, environmental and energy efficiency groups, labor unions, manufacturers, retailers, and construction contractors.

For these reasons I urge a ``yes'' vote on the rule and the underlying bill because this is a jobs bill, and we need to make jobs the highest priority.

Mr. SESSIONS. Madam Speaker, jobs are the issue, and so is debt. And taking debt of $6.5 billion to add to this deficit that we have got to pay for should be a priority. Spending five or six generations' worth of money in a year-and-a-half is not a good way to pass on a better America.

Madam Speaker, at this time I would like to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Bowling Green, Ohio (Mr. Latta).

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