Capitol Hill was busy last week as Congress focused on energy issues. In addition to the energy bill introduced by Senators Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) and John Warner (R-Va.), the following measures also drew attention:
25 X ’25
On Tuesday the House of Representatives passed a resolution setting a goal to expand renewable energy production to 25% of total U.S. energy by the year 2025.
Currently, only 6% of U.S. total energy needs is met by renewable energy sources.
A Renewable Electricity Standard is key to the House energy bill passed in August. The Senate’s energy bill contained no such standard, but would expand and accelerate the Renewable Fuels Standard for the automotive industry. The House and Senate are attempting to reconcile the different bills.
New Farm Bill Leaving Committee
Word from the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee is that the latest version of the Farm Bill will provide $1.3 billion dollars over five years for investments in farm-based energy, including grants and loans for cellulosic bio-refineries.
The bill will be fine-tuned this week before going to the Senate floor next week.
Obama and Harkin Offer Ethanol Bill
Senator Barack Obama (D-IL), a 2008 presidential candidate, and Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, proposed a stand-alone bill to require 18 billion gallons of renewable fuels be blended with U.S. gasoline supply by 2016, including 3 billion gallons from advanced biofuels, like cellulosic ethanol.
The bill would immediately update the Renewable Fuels Standard, mandated by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which took effect on September 1, 2007 and calls for 7.5 billion gallons by 2012.
Obama and Hark proposed the legislation, which supports farmers in their states, when negotiations between the Senate and House on competing energy bills stalled. The Senate version of the energy bill contains a similar measure, though the House bill does not.
The standard could also be tacked onto the farm bill that the Senate is preparing to debate.
Global Warming Wildlife Bill
U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) announced new legislation that would address the impacts of climate change on America’s wildlife. If passed, the bill would provide unprecedented support for examining and protecting imperiled plants and animals in the United States.
Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), who chairs the Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works, will cosponsor The Global Warming Wildlife Survival Act, which directs the federal government to identify, monitor, and protect or restore wildlife populations and habitats that are likely to be harmed by global warming.
Experts estimate that 20-30% of animal and plant species face a risk of extinction by global warming.
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