With great interest…and amusement, I was able to watch part of the three hour debate on the House floor regarding the Climate Change and Energy Policy Act of 2009 (HR 2454). After listening to pros and cons from congress people all over the United States, how on earth can people possibly discern which direction is best? I work in the utility industry and I pay attention to this stuff because it will affect our customers.
I decided the best way to share pros and cons would be to pass on some of the comments I heard from congressional leaders during the general debate. To the best of my ability I wrote down some of their comments verbatim but obviously could not include their entire dialogue.
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R-California Dana Rohrbacher
“Wake up America! This bill will cause great damage to the American people in the name of phony science.”
D-North Carolina G.K. Butterfield
“Save the planet. You can call this a carbon tax all you want, but you are wrong. This is historic legislation that needs to move forward. Built into this bill is a 15% safety net for the poorest in America. It will cost the American tax payer 48 cents per day.”
R-Tennessee Marsha Blackburn
“This is not an energy bill, it is a tax bill. Tennessee will lose 33,000 jobs in 2012 alone. The impacts of this bill will shut down small businesses and residential customers will pay $3,100 in new taxes every year.”
D-Massachusetts Richard Neal
“This bill will make America less dependent on foreign oil. It’s a difficult decision but it makes those tough choices for our children.”
R-Nebraska Lee Terry
“Omaha Public Power District did some calculations for me and they tell me that it will cost OPPD customers $74 million by 2012 and by 2030, the cost will be $414 million.”
D-Maryland John Sarbanes
“The United States is a sleeping giant; this bill will create a new framework so ordinary citizens can jump into opportunities.”
R-Oklahoma Tom Cole
“This is a flawed cap and tax legislation. It will add $3,000 to consumers' energy costs. Residents in rural areas will be disproportionately affected.”
D-California Jerry McNerney
“I’ve seen firsthand new development in technology. Long term prosperity is at hand. It is long past the time for us to pass this legislation to give us a more efficient grid.”
R-Alabama Spencer Bachus
“This will create a multi-trillion dollar derivatives market based on carbon offsets. And it gives us permission to discharge CO2. If you think the sub-prime lending market was hard to believe, wait till you see this.”
D-Ohio Betty Sutton
“This bill is not perfect but no bill is. The status quo is not acceptable. This is a jobs bill. We need to keep acting till we get it right.”
R-Iowa Tom Latham
“We have the most onerous regulations in the world. See this present (bright yellow box with a blue ribbon) says ‘To China From U.S. Congress’. [opens box and pulls out a hard hat that has stamped on it ‘American jobs’] Seventeen thousand jobs will be lost in Iowa by 2012. This bill destroys hope.
D-Iowa Bruce Braley
“This is a defining moment in our country’s history. How will we look into our children’s eyes and answer ‘Where were you when we needed climate change legislation?’ This will not cost us jobs, it will create jobs in green energy.
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The Republican congressman from Texas who led the opposition said “David Sokol, the CEO of Mid-American Energy who provides energy to the mid west, says this bill will raise utility rates across the nation and it will cost his residential consumers $110.00 per month.”
Even though I attempted to give readers both sides through the words of congressional leaders, I believe this legislation will cause grave hardship for every American.
Each side gives their own facts and as I listened, I wondered where they got their information. The common thread in support of this legislation was that it would reduce our dependence on foreign oil, which has affected me indirectly most of my life. I’ve done my own research and I oppose this bill. There was a common thread against this legislation – the loss of jobs and the overall cost to the American family. That, my friend, affects me directly.
Gwen Kautz, Customer Service Manager
Dawson Public Power District
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