Energy Tax Prevention Act of 2011
Floor Speech
Mr. MARKEY. I thank the gentleman.
I rise in opposition to the dirty air act, which overturns the scientific finding that pollution is harming our people and our planet. But as long as Republicans are making an ideological decision to overturn scientific reality, I wonder if the Republicans could offer an amendment overturning inconvenient geological reality as well. Let's tell the United States Geological Survey that Congress doesn't believe that the United States only has 2 percent of the world's oil as well. What the Republican majority is bringing to the House floor today is almost as absurd.
Republicans want our only weapon against OPEC to be a bumper sticker slogan, ``Drill, Baby, Drill.'' Well, I have news for my Republican friends. We are drilling, baby. U.S. oil production is at its highest level in nearly a decade. Domestic natural gas production is at an all-time high. But we will never be able to drill our way out of this problem.
What Republicans fail to acknowledge is that a clean energy revolution is already underway. Take a look at the new electrical generating capacity we've been installing in the United States in the last 4 years--the last 4 years. Eighty percent of all new electrical-generating capacity has been natural gas, 33,000 new megawatts; and wind, 28,000 new megawatts.
This is the last 4 years, ladies and gentlemen. Coal is down to 10,000, but rising very quickly. Solar at nearly 2,000 megawatts; biomass at nearly 1,000 megawatts. In other words, there is a revolution that is already under way. The only problem is, there is no long-term policy or certainty that has been put on the books. All we have are the Republicans fighting as hard as they can to prevent this revolution from coming to fruition so that we can dramatically reduce the amount of greenhouse gases that warm our planet, back out the oil that OPEC wants to send us, and create a new, clean energy revolution here in America that produces jobs for Americans.
This arbitrary rejection of scientific fact will not cause the gross domestic product to rise or for unemployment to fall. But here is what their bill will do: it will lead to higher pollution levels, which will rise; oil imports, which will rise; temperatures, which will rise; job creation domestically, which will actually go down.
Vote ``no'' on this assault on science, on public health, and on the American economic competitiveness that allows a revolution to take off, which makes it possible for us to solve the problems of employment, national security, and a dangerously warming planet.
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Mr. MARKEY. Madam Chair, I offer an amendment.
The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:
At the end of the bill, add the following new section:
SEC. 5. REDUCING DEMAND FOR OIL.
Notwithstanding any limitation on agency action contained in the amendment made by section 2 of this Act, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency may use any authority under the Clean Air Act, as in effect prior to the date of enactment of this Act, to promulgate any regulation concerning, take any action relating to, or take into consideration the emission of a greenhouse gas to address climate change, if the Administrator determines that such promulgation, action or consideration will reduce demand for oil.
The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 203, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Massachusetts.
Mr. MARKEY. Madam Chair, I rise in support of my amendment.
My amendment is quite simple. It just says that nothing, nothing that the Republicans are proposing today should put a limitation on the ability of the EPA to reduce the demand for importing oil from OPEC, which should be the number one objective in our country.
You know, we only have 2 percent of the world's oil reserves, and we consume 25 percent on a daily basis. That is our Achilles' heel, and there is nothing we can do about it.
So the only way in which we can solve the problem is if we reduce consumption by increasing the efficiency of the vehicles which we drive, of the boats which we use, of the planes that we ride in, of the other sources that consume the oil that we use in our country.
And what they are going to do, the Republicans, is tie the hands of the EPA to back out the 5 million barrels of oil that we import from OPEC on a daily basis.
OPEC is not afraid of the Foreign Affairs Committee. OPEC is not afraid of the Armed Services Committee. It is the Energy Committee that they are afraid of.
They are afraid that one day we will actually have a policy that backs out their imported oil, that denies them the $150 billion or $200 billion a year that we send over to them that allows them to continue their dictatorships. That's what they are afraid of.
And what the Republicans are doing today is tying the hands of our country to be able to tell OPEC we don't need their oil anymore than we need their sands. That's the message that they are sending here today. That's the message the Republicans are sending to OPEC.
Have a good night's sleep. Don't worry. We are going to tie the hands of the EPA to back out that imported oil. That's why this amendment goes right to the heart of the national security of our country, right to the heart of our economic independence, as well as reducing greenhouse gases. The national security of our country is at stake in this amendment.
I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. MARKEY. I yield myself 1 minute.
And let me say this to you, the Republicans: I had an amendment out here to increase fuel economy standards from 25 to 35 miles per gallon in 2001, 2003, 2005. You voted against it every time. You said that it will ruin the auto industry if we improve the fuel economy standards. Do you know who ruined the auto industry? You did. In 2009, General Motors had to declare bankruptcy.
Now we have fuel economy standards at 35 miles per gallon. Do you want to know what they are reporting? Record profits. Do you know what Ford is reporting? Record profits and record hiring. Do you know who is opposed to your bill here today? The United Auto Workers oppose you. They believe it's going to undermine the efficiency and the job creation which is now possible. The United Auto Workers oppose you.
So, ladies and gentlemen, if you're looking for jobs or national security in this bill, make sure you vote for the Markey amendment because they are so historically so far off base with this bill that it cannot begin to be measured.
I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. MARKEY. I yield myself the balance of my time.
What the Republicans are doing in their bill is stripping the EPA of their authority to regulate the fuel efficiency of vehicles that we drive in our country, of the planes, the trains and the boats where we put the petroleum. That's what their bill does. That's what the Supreme Court gave them as authority.
The gentleman says, EPA is misnamed. Well, let me just tell you under the Republicans, EPA stands for ``Every Polluter's Ally.'' Under the Democrats, it stands for ``End Petroleum Addiction.'' That's what the Markey amendment does. It gives the EPA the authority to back out this imported oil and to tell them that we're going to use the Oklahoma oil, the Texas oil and the Louisiana oil; but we don't need that oil coming out of the Persian Gulf any more than we need to send 100,000 young men and women over there.
Let's set a new policy path here today, ladies and gentlemen. Let's give those OPEC ministers a few sleepless nights. Let's not allow them to look at the Congress, once again ignoring the strength of our country, which is our technological genius, to be able to invent the new technologies that make us less dependent. And what did the Republicans do one month ago? They zeroed out all of the loan guarantees for solar and wind. They zeroed them out of the legislation. That's their all-of-the-above legislation.
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