Transparency in Regulatory Analysis of Impacts on the Nation Act of 2011
Floor Speech
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Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Chairman, I rise to offer a simple and straightforward amendment to H.R. 2401.
My amendment will help make sure that the reports required by H.R. 2401 are fair--not skewed to support the majority's favorite talking points. It's critical that the reports look at the beneficial consequences of environmental protection, including the fact that good environmental policies create jobs in the clean energy sector.
I reject the argument that the majority is making here today. Contrary to what we've heard members of the majority say over and over during today's debate, policies that protect our environment also create jobs. They create good family-wage jobs.
Before I came to Congress, I spent my career as a clean energy engineer. I helped design windmills that overlooked my congressional district in California, and I've seen hundreds of jobs created in the clean energy sector; but to my great distress, I also watched many of those jobs get shipped overseas to places like Germany because our country did not have the right policies in place to support that industry.
I am committed to creating jobs and seeing more goods produced right here in America, a goal I am confident that every Member of this Chamber shares. The clean energy industry is poised to lead the way but only if we make the right decisions. Policies that promote a clean, healthy environment create new incentives for investments in clean energy, creating thousands of jobs, supporting new industries, promoting exports, and benefiting public health.
My amendment simply ensures that we include the job-creating effects of environmental policies on the clean energy sector in the reports provided by this bill. I am confident that a fair, unbiased assessment of environmental rules will show that they also create good, family-wage, clean energy jobs. I hope the majority will accept this amendment.
I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. McNERNEY. Thank you.
Basically I just want to emphasize I have actually experienced job creation in the green energy sector. I have seen hundreds if not thousands of jobs created. I want to make sure we count those jobs. I don't want this to be a whitewash or anything like that. It's important that this analysis be open and that it be fair and balanced, and that's all that we are asking on this side.
With that, I yield back the balance of my time.
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