Domestic Energy and Jobs Act

Floor Speech

Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Chair, there are now 34 days left in this legislative session. We could--and should--be focusing our attention on serious legislation that will create jobs and make a real difference in the lives of our constituents. Like a long term transportation bill. Or preventing a doubling of student loan interest rates. Or the President's American Jobs Act.

Instead, under the pretense of lowering gas prices, we are dealing with this ill-considered collection of seven proposals that together would gut the Clean Air Act, trump responsible public lands management, and needlessly encumber the President's ability to safeguard our energy security.

In a radical departure from over forty years of successful, science-based clean air regulation, this legislation would for the first time require the EPA to consider industry costs when determining what level of ozone is ``safe'' for Americans to breathe--which is like a doctor changing a patient's diagnosis based on the cost of the treatment. Costs clearly matter, and they are routinely incorporated into the scoping of compliance plans. But they should never be allowed to interfere with the initial, scientific determination as to what is safe for Americans and what is not. This kind of error is further extended to the public lands provisions of this bill, which elevate energy production over hunting, fishing, recreation, conservation and other management uses while imposing arbitrary deadlines for the approval of onshore drilling applications regardless of safety concerns. Finally, the President's ability to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to respond to disruptions in our Nation's energy supply would for the first time be conditioned on a poorly defined new drilling plan that is completely unrelated to the purpose of the SPR.

Mr. Chair, this is not serious legislation. It is hastily thrown together legislative filler which everyone in this chamber understands is dead on arrival in the Senate. Given the magnitude of the challenges we face, we simply do not have this kind of time to waste.

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