05.17.06

Cantwell Unveils Energy Independence Platform to Make America Secure and Economically Stronger

Senator also announces comprehensive legislation to level playing field for clean energy technologies and diversify America’s energy sources

WASHINGTON, DC – Wednesday, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), a member of the Senate Energy Committee, unveiled the Democrats’ energy plan to help transform America’s energy system and lead the way to greater national and economic security, and a cleaner, more independent energy future. The Democrats’ plan, authored by Cantwell, will boost our country’s alternative fuels infrastructure, replace big oil giveaways with incentives for clean energy, reduce harmful emissions, and develop new technologies to reduce oil consumption. The plan contains an aggressive package of incentives and cutting-edge initiatives to help reduce foreign oil consumption 40 percent by 2020—a savings of 6 million barrels per day. Cantwell also announced her Clean Energy Development for a Growing Economy (Clean EDGE) Act, which is structured to reflect these core principles.

“We need to lead the way toward a better, cleaner energy future less dependent on fossil fuels,” said Cantwell, Senate Democrats’ point person on energy issues. “We have 43 senators already united behind the five principles of our plan, and with a bipartisan effort, we can put our nation firmly on the right track. America must rise to the challenge. It’s time to stop simply talking about energy independence and start running toward a future that will make America more competitive, more innovative, and more secure.”

“America today is nearly sixty percent dependent on foreign oil,” continued Cantwell. “For the sake of our security and our economy, Americans cannot afford that dependency—and we won’t accept it. I’d rather invest in American ingenuity to guide us off this dependency than send more American dollars overseas to unstable oil-rich countries. We are united today behind this plan to reduce our dependence on foreign oil by 40 percent in 2020. We are going to make America more secure and more competitive, and we are getting started today. ”

Wednesday, Cantwell and 42 other senators sent a letter sent to President Bush laying out five clear principles for achieving energy independence. In their letter, the senators underscored the need for a new energy policy, and emphasized their willingness to work with the administration to deliver the solutions Americans demand.

“It is crucial that the United States sets a national goal and embarks on a serious strategy to reduce our dependence on petroleum, equivalent to 40 percent of our projected imports by 2020,” the senators wrote. “We are united around a set of core principles that can help America achieve this goal, and believe we must act expeditiously to put this nation on the right track. We stand ready to work with your Administration and Congressional Republicans to pass legislation reflecting these principles before the summer recess.”

Democrats laid out the following five principles as part of their comprehensive energy plan:

  • The United States must launch an aggressive effort designed to ensure that an increasing number of new vehicles sold in America can run on alternative fuels—starting with 25 percent in 2010—and must launch a bold initiative to invest in the infrastructure needed to promote real competition at the gas pump.
  • The United States must ensure that consumers are protected from gasoline price-gouging and energy market manipulation.
  • The United States must lessen its reliance on fossil fuels and take steps to curb greenhouse gas emissions by diversifying electricity sources to include more renewable resources.
  • The United States government—our nation’s single largest energy consumer—must help lead this transition by adopting the best available fuel efficiency and alternative vehicle technologies to reduce its petroleum consumption by 20 percent over the next five years, and by 40 percent by 2020.
  • The United States must level the playing field for new renewable and energy efficiency technologies by providing incentives for consumers and manufacturers to develop and deploy the next generation of fuel efficient vehicles, and by ensuring that major oil companies pay their fair share in taxes and royalties owed to the American public.

Cantwell has been a consistent advocate of measures to reduce oil imports, promote greater use of domestically produced biofuels, increase the availability of flex-fuel vehicles, and dramatically improve national vehicle fuel economy standards. As the chair of the Senate Democrats’ Energy Independence 2020 national campaign, Cantwell is working to break America’s overdependence on foreign oil, protect working families from skyrocketing energy costs, and stop unfair market manipulation by energy companies. Last October, Cantwell convened the Biofuels Business Collaborative—a group of Washington businesses, farmers, investors, and fuel consumers—to help create a strong Washington biofuels industry. Earlier this month, she joined with officials from the Port of Grays Harbor and representatives from Seattle BioDiesel to announce plans for one of the nation’s largest biodiesel plants at the Port of Grays Harbor. Today’s plan, and Cantwell’s Clean Edge Act, represent the next big step toward a better energy future for all Americans.

Audio of Cantwell’s remarks on the Democrats’ plan, delivered at a press conference Wednesday morning, is available here

A copy of the senators’ letter outlining their plan, sent Wednesday to President Bush with 43 signatures, is available here

A copy of the Clean EDGE Act is available here

A copy of Cantwell’s statement on the Clean EDGE Act is available here


A summary of Cantwell’s Clean EDGE Act is below:

DIVERSIFYING AMERICAN ENERGY SOURCES, INVESTING IN THE FUTURE

  • Renewable Electricity. To help reduce America’s reliance on fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the Clean EDGE Act sets a national renewable portfolio standard requiring that 10 percent of all electricity produced in the country come from renewable sources by 2020.
  • ARPA-E. The Clean EDGE Act will create an Advanced Research Projects Agency for Energy (ARPA-E) to develop cutting-edge technologies that will reduce oil consumption, improve electricity efficiency and reliability, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Investing in American Jobs and Industry. The Clean EDGE Act will create a clean energy investment administration to help deploy new, on-the-ground solutions. It will also invest in education programs to develop a skilled domestic workforce in advanced energy technologies.

TRANSFORMING AMERICA’S VEHICLES & INFRASTRUCTURE

  • Flex-Fuel Vehicles: The Clean EDGE Act accelerates the conversion of American vehicles to flexible fuel technology. The legislation mandates that 25 percent of new vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2010 be flex-fuel capable, rising to 50 percent by 2020. Flexible fuel vehicles can run on higher blends of biofuels, which helps displace petroleum and provides competition at the gas pump.
  • Accelerating Infrastructure Conversion: A major barrier to using flex fuel vehicles to reduce petroleum consumption is the lack of refueling stations that provide biofuels. The Clean EDGE Act sets a national goal of installing alternative fuels at 10 percent of American gas stations by 2015. To help achieve it, the legislation will provide additional tools to individual retailers, along with support to local governments that partner with private industry to establish alternative refueling corridors in different parts of the country. In order to break the oil industry’s lock on the gas pump, it also requires major integrated oil companies that own refueling stations to install alternative fuel pumps.
  • Hybrids and Advanced Vehicle Technology: The Clean EDGE Act will accelerate and extend incentives to purchase and manufacture vehicles that rely on advanced fuel efficiency technologies.

PROTECTING AMERICAN CONSUMERS & BUSINESSES

  • Preventing Gas Price Gouging and Increasing Transparency in the Oil and Gas Industry. The Clean EDGE Act makes gas price-gouging a Federal crime, enhances Federal authority to prevent and prosecute manipulation of fuel supplies and anti-competitive behavior, and increases the transparency of petroleum markets.
  • Energy Price Relief for Low-Income Americans: The Clean EDGE Act will provide additional assistance to Americans struggling under the weight of rising energy costs, by providing flexibility in Food Stamp and Section 8 Public Housing requirements, and a refundable tax credit to LIHEAP-eligible households to help cover residential energy costs.
  • Energy Emergency Loans for Farmers and Small Businesses: Volatile prices place an extra burden on businesses that operate close to the margin. The Clean EDGE Act creates disaster loan assistance through the Small Business Administration and USDA, for small businesses and farmers trying to cope with rising energy costs.

LEVELING THE PLAYING FIELD FOR CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES

  • Ending Giveaways to Big Oil. The Clean EDGE Act will revoke subsidies for profit-rich, major oil companies, and make sure they pay their fair share in royalties owed to American taxpayers for drilling on public lands and in federal waters.
  • Providing Certainty to Emerging Technologies: Rather than subsidizing the mature petroleum industry, the Clean EDGE Act will use these savings to provide greater certainty for clean energy development, by extending incentives for renewable energy and efficiency technologies.

REAL GOVERNMENT LEADERSHIP FOR CLEAN AND SECURE ENERGY

  • A Serious Federal Commitment: The federal government is the single largest energy consumer in America. The Clean EDGE Act requires the Federal government reduce its petroleum consumption by 20 percent in five years and 40 percent by 2020, increase its renewable electricity use to 10 percent of total consumption by 2013, and employ advanced, efficient, and renewable technology to help drive innovation and jumpstart markets.
  • Innovative New Tools for States: The Clean EDGE Act provides enhanced bond issuing authority to states and local governments, for projects to reduce oil consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, to develop non-petroleum fuels, invest in efficient vehicles, alternative infrastructure and transit.
###