U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, made the following statement on Tuesday during the full committee markup of several bills addressing energy issues. All five bills passed unanimously by voice vote.
“Today we consider five bills, all aimed at addressing today’s energy issues. They involve energy conservation, consumer education, renewable and alternative energy. H.R. 5534 was introduced by Reps. Rogers and Fossella. It is a bill that would establish a grant program in the Department of Energy’s Clean Cities Program to expand the availability of alternative fuels. It is funded by the penalties collected under the CAFE program.
“We are at a crossroads with alternative fuels in this country. More than 6 million vehicles can actually use E85, but their drivers have few places in which to purchase this fuel. There are only about 800 E85 fueling stations across the entire United States. E85 reduces dependence on foreign oil, but the value of a tank full of E85 diminishes considerably if everybody has to drive a hundred miles to fill up. This bill will take CAFE penalties, which in 2004 totaled over $20 million, and spend that money to build a network of E85 fueling stations that are right around the corner instead of somewhere in the next state.
“The next bill, H.R. 5632, deals with tires and fuel economy. Using efficient tires can actually reduce the amount of gasoline needed in the United States by up to two billion gallons a year. H.R. 5632, introduced by Reps. Shimkus, Engel and Allen, directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to create methods to rate the fuel efficiency of tires. This information will be required to be supplied at the point of sale so that buyers can see which tires save and which don’t.
“H.R. 5611, introduced by Reps. Conaway, Upton, Hall, Towns and Green, is another good consumer education bill. H.R. 5611 creates a partnership between the Department of Energy and industry groups, including oil companies and automobile companies, to educate U.S. drivers about the things they can do to use less fuel. There are many many drivers that don’t know all the many many things they can do to save a few gallons and quite a few dollars, starting with a light foot on the accelerator. I confess that I have not always been the best practitioner of this philosophy, but I would point out today, on the way in to this markup, I let three cars pass me, so I am learning. I notice that some of my fellow Texans seem to hold a different view, also, but the truth is it does work.
“The next bill is a committee print of a bill to study and promote the use of energy efficient computer servers in the United States. This bill, sponsored by Mr. Rogers of Michigan, does not yet have a bill number. It would provide for an EPA study and report to Congress within 90 days on energy consumption of computer server data centers by the federal government and private entities. The study would provide Congress not just an analysis of the facts concerning energy use of computer server data centers, which I understand can be substantial, but provide a summary of Federal programs now in place to encourage use of energy efficient servers and recommendations of what Congress can do to provide additional incentives. The bill also contains a sense of Congress that purchasers should consider energy efficiency as a high priority when purchasing computer servers.
“Finally, H.R. 2730, the United States-Israel Energy Cooperation Act, is sponsored by Mr. Shadegg of Arizona and co-sponsored by a bipartisan group of 85 members of Congress, over a dozen of whom serve on this committee. This bill sets up a grant program at Department of Energy to fund cooperative joint ventures between private entities and academics in the U.S. and Israel to research, develop and commercialize new technologies in alternative energy, energy efficiency and renewable energy. It is a seven-year program and the bill authorizes $20 million per year for the program. It also includes a feature whereby the government can recoup its investment if the project becomes a commercial success. I look forward to reporting all five of these bills with broad, bipartisan support.”
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