and energy conservation behind the important ledge this important legislation this explanation document j c x one nine dash eight is currently available on the joint committee swap site h r five three five one represents a step in the right direction the sky was most interest the issue of climate change and energy security mr speaker we have an opportunity today to once again visit this important international certainly not actual crisis that our country is facing today which neal an outstanding member of the oversight committee work with my dear friend phil english was able to explore how the congress might be more aggressive in dealing with this serious problem climate control what role did we play to avoid our dependency on fossil fuel how many lives have been lost as a result about a nation feeling insecure about oil reserves throughout the world did we attempt to conserve did we protect the earth did we create the jobs  obligation i hate to see that their work it is going to say that here we go again that we're done this before that the senate hasn't acted or that other members would take the time to talk about the pieces of legislation instead of devoting all of their attention as to how we can make this issue one that the president can come to the table and join with us in attempt to on to do all that we can to make certain that we meet the challenges that arise on our watch and so i reserve the balance of my time mr snake but i do hope that the discussion we have today that members realize that the whole world is watching history is being made its out choice as to whether have made a positive contribution or what the some members have preferred to make a be a political impediment to that progress but no matter how many times we are rejected by the se and leadership is committed to be able to say the no now watch while we were here we've done all we have could do and note in the face and we saw the serious problem i little minds adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines and mr speaker our friends on the other side of the aisle have today trumpeted forward an energy bill which they claim will promote energies america's energy independence as the chairman of the ways and means committee noted this is a serious issue but for those of you are inclined to actually keep track of these things this is actually the fourth time that the majority is  vanced this particular flawed proposal in one form or another that to me is a foolish consistency or just like a broken record this bill clearly is not playing with the american people we fear that it will harm consumers ball individual consumers and companies and it will also hurt the competitive position of the american anomie at a time when that economy is teetering on the lip of a recession and we are passing through this chamber stimulus legislation washington on to think twice before we go forward with a bill like this instead of  embracing an energy policy that meets the needs of our economy now and anticipates the challenges of the future it is clear today that the majority have not chosen this path and reality mr speaker our friends on the other side of the aisle have presented the house chamber with the placebo the wall the mentally reduced domestic energy production will punish american energy companies that do what we want them to and that is invest their profits and exploration here at home will encourage greater dependence on foreign oil and will potentially damage america's manufacturing base this bill is not a serious solution it is energy policy light and it's clearly intended to appeal more to the blogosphere than to market forces the democrat solution to america's energy crisis is to single out what they claim are the five largest oil and gas producers for a tax increase the fact is mr speaker this legislation is not likely to impact oil producers profits in any way shape or form it is also not limited to the five largest producers as they claim the one thing you can be sure that this bill will do is raise prices at the pump for american consumers and create a looming sense of uncertainty which will compound the forces increasing prices today in the marketplace furthermore it creates disincentives that will erode the supply of domestic natural gas and oil and increase our country's energy imports while h r fifty three fifty one not only forces our country to become more dependent on foreign port while it will also force america's working families to bear the brunt of increased energy costs the effects of high gas prices will ripple through the economy increasing prices on everything from electronics to school supplies h r fifty three fifty one is also i'm afraid an assault against america's manufacturing base is a nearly one third of the nation's energy both as fuel and feedstock energy production is the very heart of american manufacturing was such an energy intensive sector raising energy prices will make domestic manufacturers less competitive in the world market forcing more of our good paying manufacturing jobs to go overseas mr speaker i have long advocated for a comprehensive energy plan that will reduce our dependence on foreign poll oil and increase americans access to clean affordable and dependable energy for their cars their homes and their businesses yet here again mr speaker this bill is moving in the wrong direction it throws effective incentives for producing renewable energy out the window and replaces them with backward and broken provisions in this bill the when credit gets such a substantial modification that it will dramatically reduce its effect of this for some of its most successful consumers this will eliminate a critical incentive to increase renewable energy sources one that has worked mr speaker this version of the democrats energy bill is also in an awed way hostile to domestic and not only economic interests but i would argue foreign policy interests this bill raises taxes on american oil producers well cutting a break for the venezuelan state owned oil company citgo in effect mr speaker this legislation will take away incentives that have proven to bolster domestic energy production right here at home while giving more american dollars to i guess we would call him a tin horn a leftist dictator that is threaten to sever venezuelan energy supplies destined to the united states clearly america's best interests are not in the heart of this plan this bill further repeals the domestic manufacturing deduction for domestic oil and gas companies but allows all other oil and gas companies to receive a six percent deduction this creates a situation whereby foreign owned companies can claim the u s domestic manufacturing deduction but certain employers can't h r fifty three fifty one is simply not the answer it wasn't in any of its through or pretty three previous incarnations and it isn't today this legislation threatens america's investment threatens america's jobs threatens the american economy and puts the consumer at a disadvantage mr speaker i urge that we defeat it here today and i reserve the balance of my time gentleman from pennsylvania reserves the balance of this time the gentleman from new york mrs speak we've turned to the threat of a national security of the all it produces in venezuela is a clear example of a failed energy policy in this country whether it's south america whether it's the middle east but it should be pointed out at least for the record as compiled by the center for american progress that profits during the bush administration for oil companies have risen from thirty billion dollars to one hundred three billion dollars we don't think it's asking too much for them to this than partnership to find out whether there's a better way to  our energies needs i now like to recognize two minutes to miss the eleven an outstanding member of the congress and distinguished member of the ways and means committee gentleman from michigan and reco as you listen to the minority it shows the bankruptcy of their approach to energy they've been in control of this town for all these years and we have moved backwards and show instead of coming up now with an alternative of their own what they do is to raise arguments that are so irresponsible for example about raising gas prices the joint economic committee has refuted that there isn't a single argument that mr anguish raised take in there any weight of observation and it's absolutely mysterious why in a tie of global warming what they do on the minority side is come here with a cold shoulder this is a responsible bill balanced it addresses long term needs on energy long term incentives for renewable energy solar wind biomass and also tr refrigerators washing machines there's an incentive here to increase the efficiency and also to do so with american jobs so i stand here today wondering where have you been all of these years when you control this institution the white house and that is i think you've not only been out to lunch but you've been out to dinner and you come here today with nothing but attacks that are unwarranted urge that we move this bill once again and hope the senate will find the sixty votes and that the president will come to his senses an energy in this country jim time has expired general pennsylvania thank you mr speaker i yield myself fifteen seconds simply to point out to the other gentlemen that some of the provisions that he cited were actually originally written into the law during the republican congresses when we were in the majority and when we were fighting against their opposition to pursue these important conservation measures and with that mr speaker i want to yield three minutes to a distinguished member of the ways and means committee the gentleman from texas mr brady jump from texas recognized for three minutes thank you mr speaker i don't want to burst anyone's rhetorical bubble here but this is not a new direction  today the only new direction in this bill is that we are outsourcing american energy jobs in raising prices at the pump a couple years ago congress worried about too many jobs going overseas sat down and worked out a new tax code that said if you invest produce and create jobs here in america we'll give you a lower tax rate than if you do the same overseas what this  one american industry the energy industry and says no but not for you we're going to treat your jobs like foreign jobs we're going to treat your investment like foreign investment we're going to treat you as foreign companies just so we can take your money and here we are almost two million american energy jobs at risk people who have mortgages have children are dated they do in good work provide this energy all said and they don't matter anymore and as a result here we are facing a recession job losses in michigan ohio across this country and we're willing to outsource our american jobs overseas for a political exercise the result of this bill there will be less investment in american energy that we less production of american energy without more dependence on foreign oil and we'll have higher fuel prices and make no mistake politicians are shooting at big oil but they're hitting american energy workers and they're hitting families in the pocketbook whenever there's no argument left you'll hear this exxon mobil's making record profits you'll hear it over and over again well politicians in washington  reserves are held in unstable governments russia venezuela iran and no wonder prices are so high the world knows american won't take responsibility for its own energy needs won't explore unstable governments like ourselves  american public is paying a political tax at the pump because we won't take responsibility for our own energy needs what this congress has done to lower fuel prices allowed people to sue opec promoted longer lasting light bulbs and it to their credit directed higher fuel mileage which is good for everyone but american automakers the false choice today is is punished american energy or renewable energy no this country needs to do both invest in america's energy traditional energy supply and go after new energy don't mind i've acquired john from the arc this is the gentleman from texas and forward to continuous high profits as they have been reaping during this administration that they are in support of this legislation a light to recognize mr mcdermott from washington a member of the ways and means committee but three minutes gentlemen from washington is recognized for three minutes mr speaker the gentleman from texas brings tears to my eyes big oil has america over the proverbial barrel not only are we paying a hundred dollars a barrel for oil and over three dollars and thirty cents a gallon at the pump and it will soon be four dollars not only are oil companies piling up record profits at ten billion dollars a quarter but the american people are sending truckloads of taxpayer money to fatten big oil's wallet every month the legislation before us would stop the madness of american people subsidizing oil companies after they got the republican friends in the white house and the people's house to give them a windfall they didn't earn didn't deserve and don't need and the legislation before us today will keep america on course to sustainable renewable energy future we can dramatically reduce the energy consumption by dramatic increasing energy efficiency and this bill does that using tax credits and interest free prine unsing to partner with the american people to enable them to renovate their homes to reduce consumption and install efficient appliances we can dramatically increase the development and deployment of alternative fuels like bio diesel and produce advanced bio diesel fuel with an even lower carbon footprint and this bill goes in the right direction we can dramatically increase the development of clean and renewable sources like solar and this bill does that extending the investment tax credit for solar energy production will keep two hundred forty million tons of c o two out of the atmosphere that's like parking fifty two million cars today we declare that america will not permit corporate greed to force the american people to choose between food on the table and fuel to heat their house or get to work today we declare that america will put americans ahead a big oil today we declare that america will to power tomorrow with clean renewable and sustainable resources and today we declare we will consume less power tomorrow i urge my colleagues to pass this legislation and declare the dawn of a new day in america when the rising sun not only symbolizes the hope for a new day but delivers the energy for a tomorrow i y a thirty five and a half minutes remaining on that case it is my privilege to yield three minutes to the gentleman from california and a senior member of the ways and means committee committee mr herger california's recognized for three minutes thank you mr speaker today's bill is eerily reminiscent of legislation we saw back in august modest renewable energy tax incentives which i have long supported mixed with a ra reformulation of billions of dollars in new taxes on america's pretty dominant energy manufacturers apparently the majority is more interested in scoring political point in providing anything close to an energy plan the democrats even make sure to preserve a carve out that will enable hugo chavez company that claim a us tax deduction when our constituents ask us to do something about gas prices they don't want us to raise them yet by an increasing taxes on u g manufacturers by more than seventeen billion dollars this bill creates a significant this incentive for i'd like to finish my statement please this incentive for domestic production decreasing our energy security and increasing our over reliance on uncertain foreign supplies expanding the diversity of our domestic supplies is one step that will be accomplished over time through tax incentives such as the energy investment and production tax credit for resources like forest bio mass geothermal and solar energy but we can't possibly hope to meet demand by raising taxes and making us production even more costly what may make a nice talking point taxes won't going to thirty seconds but given thirty seconds me ask a question to you now mr herder would you be kind enough to specify specifically what the car about you think is in this bill for hugo chavez with a carve out i notice that we are taxing those american companies producing in the united job there is no car shots it does not it leaves a carve out because it doesn't retouch recoiling think claiming my time  it's very clear that the gentleman does not have a car about for hugo chavez he's just talking about the five oil companies that would be dealt with under this gem time aspired gentleman from new york you are an outstanding member of congress has worked so hard in the ways and means committee michelle to pennsylvania gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for three minutes thank you have to speak your lansley the price of oil so that's at one hundred dollars per barrel for the first time ever american families are hurting from these record prices gas prices are up seventeen cents in just the last two weeks since two thousand and one when president bush came into office gas prices have doubled for up to three dollars and thirty cents a gallon from one dollar and forty seven cents in two thousand and one at the same time all company profits have tripled from thirty billion dollars in two thousand and one to one hundred twenty three billion in two thousand and seven exxon mobil alone had a profit of forty billion dollars one one hundred thirty two dollars for every american citizen it's time our country set a new direction for energy policy by taking advantage of america's greatest resource  ingenuity and our innovation this legislation embraces the scole it accelerates the use of clean domestic renewable energy sources and alternative fuels through long term extension of of production tax credits legislation increases research development and deployment of clean renewable energy efficient technologies and this legislation promotes the use of energy efficient products and conservation including a provision of for energy efficient commercial buildings which i introduce a separate legislation called the buildings of the twenty first century act that's why this bill was endorsed by eighty three thousand member american institute of architects and i ask  are ready to make america more energy independent more energy efficient and ready to run on safer cleaner and cheaper energy this bill before us moves us more quickly and more deliberately towards this goal it will make us safer healthier and more economically competitive in the future and we pay for this bill we do so by repealing taxpayer subsidies for the five biggest oil companies and reduce redirecting these revenues towards these renewable sources of energy and energy conservation creating new jobs in america and spurring new economic development i urge all of us who believe in the capacity of american in innovation to power american businesses and industries and to make us more energy independent independent to build a safer cleaner future for all of us to support this legislation and to pass it today thank you  yet the definition in the bill i think clearly excludes it basically this would this bill would repeal the special domestic manufacturing deduction for major integrated oil companies but under the strict definition included citgo is not defined as a major integrated oil company since it does not produce crude oil itself based on the citgo would continue to receive the domestic manufacturing deduction while a number of u s based companies will not with that i'll retain the balance of my time but yield three minutes to a very distinguished member of the energy and commerce committee and so and chairman of the carbon sequestration and yes we do need tax incentives for wind in south solar there's no question about that but raising taxes on the oil and gas industry is not the answer my state of michigan an answer to our budget  fact did raise taxes in a couple things are happening people are leaving and so our businesses many of us in this body been complaining for years that we didn't have new we finally said being built in the established in this country we passed the zero five act and guess what those we've seen some changes what's going to happen if we take those incentives away we're not going to see new refinery capability again come back to this country we need to have incentives in place to help our oil and gas industries and to take those incentives away well they're going to leave and frankly i view that as a national security issue countries overseas would love this bill to pass countries like india they can hardly wait for us to raise taxes here so they they will have a better advantages they build new refineries to send their reclined loyal to this country in fact right now ten percent of the gasoline that comes to this country comes from refineries overseas that wasn't always the case but it is today so what's going to happen if we raise the taxes two things number one we have further incentives to have those companies leave and costs are going to be passed on to the consumer with gas prices at least in my district already averaging about three thirty a gallon and reports of they're going to go to four dollars what's going to happen in those costs are going to be passed along does anyone really think that this is going to help now most of our  solar those those facilities are frankly where they're not often a lot of energy needs are not in our big cities they're not in our suburbs and i don't know if you can remember but this last summer we had a vote that in fact was somewhat regional in nature but it took away it took a stand on a new transmission line that impacted folks here in the northeast i viewed it as a test vote as to whether additional renewables services that we do want what it would we have the transmission line to actually send that energy to our cities and to our suburbs and i don't know if you saw yesterday's usa today but lines lacking to transmit winter wind energy we don't have the sources then it it takes five to ten years to build these transmission lines and yet it only takes about eighteen months to build to the wind another different devices that we have but if you don't seconds i'll bet it's those folks that voted to deny the transmission line last summer will be voting for this bill you can't have it both ways let's have a serious discussion that's bipartisan to address the country's energy needs it would be that we have a lousy and a g policy in this company in this country and we just hope you will join with us in trying to protect our great national security like the yield to three minutes to which it neil from massachusetts the very important national issue mr speaker this is more headlines tell part of the story gas prices soar posing a threat to the family budget gas prices have been soaring for the last two years last evening's newscast led with what's happened to gasoline prices if you live in the northeast mr speaker you know what's happened to low income and middle class families during winter heating season they're struggling to pay energy costs that have skyrocketed in the middle of a harsh when for the elderly are particularly vulnerable at times when they're trying to secure medicine food and other daily necessities circumstances similar to this were evident last week when h h s belatedly released forty million dollars in emergency contingency funds from the low income home energy assistance program like he and by the way to our republican friends who might have forgotten it was congressman silvio conti a republican who helped to inaugurate the life he program here in congress that has done so much good for all americans we can and should do more so that struggling people don't have to fear the possibility of going to bed in a cold ousts in a nation that has been blessed with so much we ought to be able to agree on the necessities of food and medicine and shelter and yes to make sure people don't go to bed in a cold house this bill offers important senate for renewable and efficient energy programs as well as energy conservation we held hearings last year on all of these initiatives they were met with standing room only audiences people are anxious to explore the advantages of alterna g e alternative energy resources this legislation in front of us today helps to invite the debate and a discussion about where we need to go as a nation this important legislation calls attention to the opportunity to promote progressive energy and cost savings for the american family whether it's clean renewable energy bonds for mis something i'm particularly excited about and my guess is even those who don't like this bill today on the republican side they encourage their municipalities to take advantage of these opportunities should they arise it also offers a residential energy efficient property credit it offers improved incentives for businesses to deploy wind solar geothermal and other promising technologies i would think if you were a member of congress from texas you certainly would like the incentives that are offered here on the basis of wind power this is bigger this legislation will put us on a path to cleaner greener and stronger families and a stronger america pennsylvania thank you mr speaker it's now my privilege to yield two minutes to a distinguished member of the energy and commerce committee of the general eighty from tennessee ms blackburn gentleman's tennessee is recognized for two minutes thank you mr speaker i rise today to oppose this bill it doesn't produce one bit of energy it does not generate one kilowatt of electricity it does not move us toward energy independence and certainly those are things that need to be a priority when we discuss energy now the price of the barrel of oil we have talked about that today it is topping one hundred dollars but where was it a year ago it was it fifty six  barrel of oil and i like to talk about what that means to my consumers and the impact that that has on my constituents in my district we have seen the price of a gallon of gas go up seventy five cents per gallon in the seventh district of tennessee over the past year let's say a typical mom in tennessee seventh district fills up her fifteen gallon tank once a week that's forty seven dollars per fill up every month she's spending forty four dollars more on that gasoline than she was last february the difference for the year is five hundred twenty eight dollars more coming out of her pocket to pay the additional energy cost and now there's a bill before us that would tax energy companies and start new domestic oil and gas production and discourage new investment in resign or a capacity and instead of making america more energy secure we are seeing then that would drive us to be more dependent on pond sources from venezuela saudi arabia and other nations it would be great if we were to have a debate on revolutioniz ing energy and revolutionary energy legislation but in reality the legislation we're discussing today doesn't alleviate the strain on the consumer it would be great if we were talking about energy independence that would be great if we were going to talk about increasing refinery capacity and if we were going to look at short term mid range and long term solutions to our nation's energy needs i would encourage all to oppose this private sector working with republicans and democrats and it doesn't make any difference how many setbacks we have the commitment that she has made continues and until we can get a bipartisan in the white house or have the senate understand that all  time has come to pace up to this problem in terms of global warming in terms of national security in terms of the up increase in costs fuel and to be able to say on our watch we let the geology and we move forward no one voice recognized thank you very much mr speaker i thank the gentleman for yielding for his very generous remarks and for his tremendous leadership once again he is providing an opportunity for this congress to come down on the side of america's families and stead of the special interest and once again he has come down at a place that talks about energy independence and security for our country one year ago actually a little longer in january of two thousand and seven mr rangle brought to the floor just lay ssion similar to this what it did was to repeal the subsidies for big oil and to use the funds for research into our renewable energy resources and incentives  tax incentives for that purpose the bill passed the house overwhelmingly it all again passed as part of our energy our bipartisan energy bill but it did not survive the senate and because the president  the bill if the subsidies to big oil were repealed imagine that and so the energy bill as much of a triumph as it was by having new cafe standards for the first time in thirty two years in the bill did not have this very important other part which would be the incentives tax incentives for renewable energy resources so again thank you mr chairman rangle for your persistence and for bringing this legislation to the floor now to give us this very special opportunity when mr rangle first brought the bill to the floor last january since then the price of oil has gone up seven the price of gasoline at the pump has gone up seventy five cents seventy five cents since we first took up this legislation imagine what that means to a household income it's seventeen cents the price at the pump has increased neven teen sent just in the past two weeks just yesterday oil prices reached another new record at more than one hundred and one dollars per gallon this is at a time when oil companies are making record profits listen to this my colleagues last year excellent exxon mobil earned forty point six billion dollars in profit forty point six billion dollars in profits the largest corporate profit in american history and yet the administration refuses to repeal billions of dollars in subsidies to big oil this bill repealed those subsidies and invest in clean renewable energy that will put us on a path toward energy security and energy independence in a fiscally responsible way by repealing subsidies to big oil only to big oil already making record profits with the renewable energy an energy conservation tax act that we are considering today we have the opportunity to invest in clean renewable energy and energy efficiency and grow our economy creating new jobs lower energy costs strengthen national security and reduce global warming this legislation and it's very important because there's so many people across the country who are being innovators who are being disruptive  making change and this change centering around energy is is very very important and this legislation is vital to them this legislation strengthens an extent the production tax credit which will spur deployment of wind biomass geothermal hydro power tidal and landfill gas it extends the solar and fuel cell investment tax credit and offers tax incentives for residential solar wind and geothermal technologies it creates a new production tax credit for cellulosic ethanol and extends the biodiesel production tax credit it expands the tax credits for gas stations that install alternative fuel pumps such as the e eighty five pumps it includes tax incentives to promote greater efficiency for homes and businesses and creates a new tax credit for plug in hybrid vehicles it creates a new category of tax credit bonds to fund local initiatives to promote the deployment of green  technologies i know that this is been said before i reiterate this because this is very very important and represents real change for our country this bill helped create a broadly based prosperity with an eighteen billion dollar investment in the future it will spur the production of clean renewable energy resources and provide business with the certainty necessary to make long term plans to build viable and sustaining markets for these technologies this is all about answers in the marketplace it will ensure that we keep the jobs that were created with the renewable tax credits and create hundreds of thousands of more next a generation of good paying clean collar green collar jobs that will be right here in america because this legislation is vital for a greener more prosperous future it is supported by a broad coalition coalition from business environmental and labor communities from corporations such as home depot and dow chemical company to the sierra club to the united steelworkers and the national farmers union i have a long list which i will submit for the record of same thing corporate labor florida power and light company it just the list goes on and on of the n m a renewable ventures national association of homebuilders national association of industrial and office properties national association of realtors national educational magic manufactures the list dupont earth justice all on the same page the list goes on and on and on this congress has already taken lead action to send our nation in a new direction of energy independence as i mentioned by increasing fuel efficiency standards for the first time in thirty two years that was a bipartisan legislation signed into law by the president what is missing are the tax incentives that the distinguished chairman mr inglis bring to the floor today energy independence is an economic issue in terms of budgets for america's families and for green creating new green jobs it is an urgent national security issue to reduce our dependence on foreign oil it is an environmental and health issue to reduce global warming and protect the health of our children and it is a moral issue to care for our planet we work closely with the evange community on these issues because they believe as do i that this planet is god's creation and we have a moral responsibility to preserve it i urge my colleagues to support the renewable energy and energy conservation tax act and in doing so take the next steps for green economy green jobs and a green future thank you again mr chairman for your distinguished leadership  thank you mr speaker with that i would like to yield five minutes to a distinguished member of the ways and means committee the gentleman from wisconsin mr right gentleman who was once and recognized for five minutes i think jennifer yielding first mr speaker let me talk about a provision in here called new york's liberty zone tax credits i hope all the members understand that a president is being made right here today when what this bill does is it gives the new york city government and the york state government the authority to take the withholding the federal tax withholding from their employees and not send the money to the federal government every single other taxpayer in america are made to do but rather keep that money and spend it on rail infrastructure this sets up a whole new policy preference and precedents that i think we should be alarmed about but i have one question for the distinguished chairman of the ways and means committee on this particular matter and that is this in the senate report one ten dash two to eight the director of the of the joint committee on taxation to the chief chairman of the of the finance committee says that this provision constitutes a tax earmark given that it only goes to two taxpayers so in light of the fact that the head of the joint committee on taxation has specified that in the senate this is a tax year mark yet the chairman has certified in this bill that there are no tax year marks contained in this legislation just a brief kildow i really want to thank the gentleman for the way you raised the question rumor had had it that you intended to tack attack this provision of the bill with all due respect mr chairman i'm not trying to attack a provision i'm trying to simply get an understanding of this of this what seems like something that's not reconciled i want to thank the gentleman for that and what i was about to say that it didn't surprise and given me an opportunity to share this vision with you and if necessary i will perhaps give myself a enough time the few not adequately satisfied first of all i think we all agree  nine one one occurred in the world trade center if i could just interject first second there are a few more points i want to make in my time and i with all respect i just would like to if you could only just very much restrict my response where the general explanation for what you ask is in the president's budget he has supported it in his budget and the joint committee advisory opinion that by the chairman of the committee which is me it's been authorized and support a request by republican mayor and republican governor now the answer to what you want is in the department of treasury report two thousand and eight if you don't want to details then i yield back a you and i cannot answer any further reclaiming my time and with all the recycling simply trying to manage my time  defines this as an earmark that the chairman of the ways and means committee has chosen to supersede that ruling and claim that this is not in his filing in the bill is that correct only because the opinion was considered it officially and legally as an advisory and the president of united states believe in fairness to the community that was it on behalf of the people of the united states of america that they should be in the extension of this so we're not talking about any new earmark or we're talking about an extension of the else you want this is not considered as an earmark ok but let me say further that even if it was i would side with the president of the united states i think the chairman for yielding that was anointing i think we're just going to agree to disagree on this one i think that this looks like a tax year mark and we ought to call it that regardless of the merits of the policy i have other qualifying concerns about this policy is my time expired already expire gentlemen recognize vision of ninety seconds two other quick points mr chairman we've been hearing this rhetoric about tax subsidies to big oil companies it's almost as if the republican congress decided to give a big tax break to just a couple of oil companies what is this policy we're looking at a few years ago we decided we wanted to do something to stop jobs from being pushed overseas we wanted to do something to help american manufacturers keep jobs here in america so what do we do we said if you make our produce something in america you will pay lower taxes here in america than if you make it overseas we're going to roared you with lower taxes all manufacturers if you make it here in america then if you ship jobs overseas and make it overseas and so what is the majority doing the majority is saying well ok but not for the oil and gas industry we're going to separate out the oil and gas industry and make them pay these higher overseas tax rates this was not a targeted tax benefit to one industry this was a policy to help bring back manufacturing jobs in america and so to call this a tax subsidy to just the auto industry number one is incorrect but number two the effect of this policy will do three things this is going to raise the price of gasoline this is going to push more jobs overseas and most of all it's going to make us more dependent on foreign oil we ought to pass an energy policy that makes us less dependent on foreign oil not more dependent on foreign oil unfortunately that is exactly what this bill does the last and final point is this mr speaker we are sitting in this bill picking winners and losers in the marketplace rather than investing in basic research rather than investing in the ideas of tomorrow that have yet to be spawned we're simply saying today's technology is going to be subsidized we're going to pick you as a winner and you is a loser and we're going to do so at the expense of tomorrow's ideas it's bad policy and makes us more dependent on foreign oil i think we should vote for this bill down time and fired gentleman from new york  the gentleman from california part of the democratic leadership in the house outstanding member of the ways and means committee and i welcome his being recognized general of california is recognized for two minutes i thank the chairman for yielding the time let me see if i get this straight exxon mobil which made over forty billion dollars in profits recently the most ever made by any corporation in our country's history needs a tax break a tax subsidy the five largest oil companies which had revenues of one hundred twenty three billion dollars last year need a tax break so they can have a reason to keep jobs in america today americans and  back home in los angeles my constituents are paying over three dollars to thirty cents a gallon for gasoline at the pump from those three dollars a thirty three cents a gallon every gallon of gas pumped that oil companies extract the monies that gave in these massive profits yet now that's not enough that they take the money from our constituents pocket for gasoline but they have to take it in the taxes that our constituents are paying to the federal treasury to give tax subsidies to the largest oil companies in america so that they can be persuaded to keep jobs in america something is wrong that's why this bill is on the floor today we're going to take this debate on energy policy in a new and different direction think solar think wind think geothermal think hydro power this bill takes us in a different direction because we think that industries are saying we want to clean burning energy we want to create new jobs and pay great wages is the best way to go today our country is suffering from the highest inflation rates it's seen in almost three decades today we see seeking employment numbers and today we have companies large corporations that are making vast profits asking for tax breaks something is wrong this bill tries to cure it i am proud to join with my constituents the american wind energy alliance the solar energy industry association the natural resources defense coun public citizen pacific gas and electric corporation target whole foods the real estate roundtable the national association of realtors and many more in saying enough is enough let's pass this new energy policy legislation you'll back ourselves from our dependence on fossil fuels and invest in energy that future however i also believe we must promote the technologies of tomorrow in a way that will benefit not harm our constituents and our long term energy security the day the house attempt this congress to pass a renewable energy tax package h r fifty three fifty one i supported the first attempt last january h r six even though i fear it reduce incentive for domestic production every house package since includes a new or different combination of revenue raisers that target the energy industry and extract billions more than prior versions if congress singles out one industry for billions of dollars you cannot go back for more and expect enough gasoline for our cars and fuel to heat and cool our homes compared to the original h r six h r fifty three fifty one include seventeen point six billion in new taxes on energy industry that's an increase of over ten b n in just one year house debates on these measures have been filled with misinformation and willingness to review the facts if congress took a moment to inject objective analysis in the debate we could see that the profit margins of energy industries are in line with in many cases below that of other industries every hour every dollar of sales in the third quarter of two thousand and seven the oil and gas industry are in seven point six cents and profit margin compared to twenty one point six cents for the beverage and tobacco industry eighteen point eight cents for the pharmaceutical industry fourteen point six for the electrical equipment and industry and fourteen point five cents for the computer equipment industry again nationwide all manufacturing companies excluding the struggling automotive industry earn nine point two cents per dollar sales as compared to energy that was seven point six so there may be great profits in it but there are also great profits in other corporations so the profits of the energy industry disproportionate with most us industry clearly the answer is no if you evaluate the industry tax contributions we'd see that companies are paying more than their fair share and growing the numbers of state federal and local governments in two thousand and six the effective tax rate for top energy companies was thirty seven percent more than a top corporate tax rate of thirty five percent when two thousand and four two thousand and six the total current income taxes paid by the twenty seven top energy companies nearly doubled nearly doubled in two years growing from forty four billion eighty one billion so we do have a progressive tax and it has d with the profits recently the amount of exxon mobil a frequent target of criticism paid in u s taxes actually exceeded their u s earnings by eighteen point seven billion so exxon mobil is paying a lot of taxes and i'm not so sure the exxon mobil or chevron or conoco phillips or any of the end of the energy industry if they pay more taxes in this bill that it will actually not go back to the bottom line that we're already paying at the pump or to pay to heat and cool our homes i wish i could tell you their own take it out of their profits but they're not required to do that that could just raise prices and so we'll see vin more despite these figures no industry is heavily scrutinized as americans are all in gas and natural gas companies that's probably because most of the production in our country comes from texas louisiana mississippi and alabama and alaska and most states don't want it but they always want their lights to be turned on and our cars to be filled up what's most concerning is we continue to move tax packages a target this industry and expect different results the senate has twice failed to reach cloture on the provisions and the president continues issue veto threats we're debating press releases and not actually legislating we did legislate last january and we had a tax package that passed this house with only four negative democratic votes but since then we've had problems with it it's time we get serious about a renewable energy and conservation policy let's put it right or her side for a moment  or think minutes this debate is not nearly so much about fossil fuels as fossilised thinking conceivably there was a time in this country when federal tax policy that was by and for big oil and see believe there was a time when that man dependable energy for families but now that approach of overreliance is outdated and ill conceived his eight track tapes are president bush's mission accomplished banner today's legislation would mean more renewable energy production more solar energy more wind energy provisions that i authored to encourage plug in hybrid vehicles and geothermal heat pumps and we don't borrow the money to pay for this renewable energy policy as the spend and borrow republicans always insist we pay for the measure by asking big oil to share  just a tiny part of the tax subsidies that they have received for decades with these emerging renewable energy sources one of the new tax loopholes that we close in this bill would otherwise have allowed big oil to claim a dollar for every gallon that it produced by simply dropping a little dab of grease and petroleum ironically a provision intended to assist biofuels companies to help us achieve end in independence in our energy sources and the the cost of this modest increase in addressing these unjustifiable tax breaks for big oil is so small that i doubt it will even warrant a footnote in the astronomical earnings report of exxon mobil the charge made here today that the price of gas will go up of this bill passes is ludicrous that anyone here remember the price of gas go and down when the oil come he's got this unjustifiable tax break well it didn't go down a dime and this charge comes from the same crowd that stood idly by while the cost of gas at the pump skyrocketed and did absolutely nothing the underneath them we need real change in our energy policy that will bring us closer to a solution for both global warming and global war i am proud that the city of austin austin energy and people throughout central texas have taken a leadership role to move us in that direction the bill we have today is green it is a green light to green jobs and a green environment and the only folks that are seeing red today are those whose padded profits compel them to to the gentleman from illinois in a distinguished member of the ways and means committee mr weller to whether the gentleman from illinois recognize for three minutes thank you mr speaker and ladies and gentlemen the house i reluctantly stand in opposition this legislation you know we had an opportunity to develop bipartisan legislation and i regret that was not achieved today the speaker ask unanimous consent placed into the record of this particular advertisement placed by the building trades of the a f l c i a o and let me let me quote this ad here it says reliable affordable supplies of energy fuel america's economy and support millions of american jobs but some in congress want to put all this in jeopardy with new higher taxes on energy history shows such taxes reduce domestic energy production but they also threaten undermine america's economy and send american jobs overseas very simple very succinct the primary reason most members who oppose this bill stand in opposition because it raises taxes on domestic manufacturers and domestic jobs i'd like to keep those jobs in america and this bill will send those jobs elsewhere i also want to draw attention to something i find frankly kind of alarming in this legislation and a reason i would encourage my colleagues who are thinking about supporting this legislation to think twice and that's what has become the known come known as the venezuela car about and this legislation now the chavez government in venezuela mentally is no friend the united states i mean we just hear the rhetoric each and every day and made that very clear but this legislation carves out the pet is avail government owned oil company from the tax increases now the biggest gasoline retailer in america is a venezuelan government owned oil company and one of the biggest refiners in america sit go and they're  and now iranian sting intelligence and security operatives use that to come in the latin american the western hemisphere and frankly it was a chavez government that sent armed troops into a jewish grade school two years ago and just this past december raided a jewish community center in caracas claiming that the community was hiding guns and also just this past week president chavez of venezuela s is his policy to keep oil at one hundred dollars a barrel that he is going to work within opec to keep oil prices high and this legislation i can't believe it was done intentionally but this legislation gives a carve out to the venezuelan government owned oil company no friend of ours i hope my colleagues think twice about supporting this i believe we had an opportunity for bipartisanship much in this bill or are some good ideas much of it builds on what we passed in two thousand and five in the energy bill two thousand and five which i strongly supported my own district the provisions in the two thousand and five energy bill that provided incentives for the develop alternative sources of energy renewable sources of energy have attracted hundreds of millions of dollars in investment the eleven congressional district of illinois wind energy biofuels ethanol and biodiesel and it's creating jobs right here at home there are some good ideas we to my friend from north dakota mr pomeroy the gentleman from north dakota is recognized the two minutes that my chairman for yelling this debate has been quite extraordinary for my friends on the other side of the aisle they create a picture of great concern poor poor boy all companies oil prices globally over one hundred dollars a barrel prices at the pump approaching record levels certain to hit record levels the time the north dakota farmers have to go in and plant their crops oil companies reporting record profits not just record profits relative to their earnings and profits of years past i mean with exxon mobil the biggest profit ever posted by a corporation in history and yet when we look at trying to break this stranglehold on imported oil and build renewable sources of energy so that our economy is not so dangerously dependent upon imported oil i would look to using as a pay for for these renewable energy incentives a tax provision exploited by other companies beyond what was ever intended by ways and means committee you have the white house threatening veto you have house republicans screaming tax increase that is an energy policy completely out of gas we need to move and move now to a new level sources take for example one wind power you know we are now into a period of time where when production tax credit expires at the end of this year the consequence relative to new products put on line is already going to be felt a recent study by the solar energy industry association of american wind energy association estimates that if this credit expires it will cost six thousand megawatts of new wind energy production nearly seventy seven thousand jobs eleven point five billion in economic impact all in two thousand and nine they have thirty additional seconds mr chairman are you on this reckoning this is the group on the other side when they were in a majority that allowed the wind production tax credit to expire three times since one thousand nine hundred ninety they extended it an additional five times now how in the world can we build a renewable energy system when you've got a tax credit that maybe there isn't that you can never get your feet a national right to make that move this country must make drew a new a balls with wind power playing the major role we need to pass this bail and break this lock oil companies have  on policy coming out of this chamber i bet but first and gentlemen pennsylvania right first to give myself fifteen seconds to simply point out to the gentleman from north dakota who i know is and as an authentic and sincere advocate of the wind energy credit that in this bill there is a cap on the wind energy credit which will have the effect of undermining the benefits for many wind energy credit participants and this is extremely important  i have i'll yield myself an extra fifteen seconds by by putting a cap on this credit that is having the effect of this it will have the effect of discouraging many from participating in the wind energy credit and for a district like mine that produces when mel technology this is a real cause for concern and with that i would like to yield three minutes to a gentleman from pennsylvania who has been a strong advocate on energy policy my good friend mr peters gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for three minutes i thank my friend from erie mr english i stand ready to support every renewable form of energy that we can produce we can't do it fast enough but today we have fifty five a year ago we had fifty five dollar oil today we have hundred dollar and i'm not going to blame mr chairman i'm not going to blame the democrats like you blamed mr bush we're all guilty congress is the reason we have hundred dollar oil and i think the bush administration could have been a lot more aggressive in its energy policy but they all five back had a lot of things in it that your side thought that are reaping benefits today but hundred dollar oil is because because this congress has the sided we're not going to produce oil and gas anymore clean natural gas we're not going to do coal the liquids coal to gas we're going to do just renewables let's look at the chart at the top the orne the buff the yellow the yellow is nuclear coal this is our energy use today and this is a projection on the right hand side on the left on the right hand side of worth going to be by twenty thirty according to the energy department if we double wind and solar in the next five years it will be less than three quarters of one percent of our energy use in america we have to double  quadruple it before it really makes a major make difference or will companies make huge profits when they own the rights to oil and congress locks up the ability harvest them in america and forces us to go offshore to bottom we've been gaining two percent a year since i've been here this will be the twelve year every year dependence grows two percent because congress has locked up supply we have to go over there to buy it for an unstable country and when you own it and we lock it up in the market goes high crazy wall street does that oil companies don't set the price wall street does and when you lock it up both sides and you don't allow us to produce i've been trying to produce clean natural gas i've been able to get a majority here for that clean and that's the one that's vital to the manufacturers of america because we s not a world price and we have the highest prices in the world however what hope does this bill actually give to young families with home heating cost nothing what hope does this bill bring to poor folks living in rural and urban america struggle to drive to work to school to the doctor's office to do their shopping it doesn't do anything what hope does this bill give to independent truckers who are struggling to pay their fuel or will bill soon approaching four dollars as they try to make a profit with their independent trucks it doesn't do anything what does this bill to do for her own suburban seniors who keep their thermostats at fifty eight degrees last winter in this winter so they can cut their fuel costs it doesn't do anything what does this bill do to prevent the tragedy that happened in my district last year when an elderly gentleman tried to warm on a subzero night by putting coal and wood stove and he burnt at the time of the gentleman has expired this bill would not have saved his life gentlemen from the right to recognize my friend mrs swell of new jersey outstanding member of the ways and means committee for two minutes the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for two minutes without objection so ordered and thank mr chairman i rise in strong support of h r fifty three fifty one and now are trying to shift from fear to new policy that's what this is all about chairman rangle deserves ample commendation for crafting this wise bill to be argued that previous congresses and previous chairman and i can totally disagree with the gentleman from pennsylvania who just spoke so we should want to turn to the next chapter we should all feel proud that this congress is again showing that we understand the urgency of the situation and the jersey gas prices have risen one hundred and one thousand percent since two thousand and one you cannot tell me that now is not the time to get serious about investing in clean energy renewable energy and energy efficiency you cannot tell me that ending unnecessary subsidies to big oil companies make record profits is an unfair course of action no one suggested on this floor that we're going to move from diesel but we're going to move from fossil fuel to alternative that nobody suggested that he or you would think that though and when i listened to those arguments and did it is long past time we wean ourselves off of foreign energy  addiction this is a homeland security issue pure and simple this bill will help provide for alternative measures for the american consumer at a time when families across our land are hurting put simply h r fifty three fifty one reinvest taxpayer subsidies to oil companies already earning record profits into clean renewable energy creating jobs making america less dependent on foreign oil strengthening our national security and helping to lower extends tax credits for bio diesel and renewable energy renewable days will likewise it provides tax incentives to help all honor all moaners and businesses reduce their energy costs by investing in energy efficient property i know businesses throughout my state in the jersey are eager to lower their energy bills but the costs at the front end are sometimes too much of a burden these tax incentives ease that burden and i have to make a choice m speaker may i inquire how much time is remaining on each side the gentleman from pennsylvania has eleven and a half minutes and on the other or cads the gentleman from new york a seventeen minute summing and a half minutes i'm sorry i wonder think the chairman of the committee many people are being asked to pay twice once at the pump and once on tax day and supporting big oil companies there are record prices at the pump and now we have record taxpayer subsidies for the big oil companies as my mother used to say such a deal exxon mobil reported earning forty billion dollars in two thousand and seven the largest corporate profit in american history at the same time oil prices topped one hundred bro one hundred bucks a barrel for the first time in history in the new york times reported this morning that by spring a gallon of gas could cost four dollars per gallon now i don't think there's anything wrong with record profits that's not unseemly in my view what's unseemly is if the congress continues to give companies that are making record profits fourteen billion dollars in taxpayer subsidies that's what's on seemly not the profits they make whatever they need to make i just wanna know when the free market principles are going to take over here at what point do the oil companies without taxpayer subsidy go out and enjoy the benefits of a free market at what point do we stop treating tax payers as dumb money that's what i got out of that's what i don't understand i got it when oil is at fifteen bucks or twenty five bucks energy companies need help at one hundred bucks a barrel you've got to enjoy the free market at some point here now here is the problem we have wedded the country and the taxpayers to a twentieth century energy source rather than investing in the twenty first energy sources whether that's wind solar or thermal we gotta keep bath stop asking the taxpayers to subsidize the path and start asking to invest in the future and that's exactly what the chairman's legislation does and it's time that we start to do that this would be a hat trick to the united states usually there's winners or losers if we did this and got this to the president and he had the courage to finally give up on his addiction to big oil we would actually have something that's good for the environment good for the economy and good for our foreign banks and start helping middle class families like what we suggested on health care with him oh stop subsidize the h m o s and start helping the consumers this legislation begin to end the subsidies at taxpayer subsidies to big oil and invest in our future by making sure we have energy independence with wind solar and thermal thank you you back to remain in my time gentleman from pennsylvania out is my privilege to yield three minutes to a truly distinguished expert on energy policy it serves on the ways and means committee the gentleman from california mr noonish gentleman from california is recognized for three minutes thank you mr speaker i rise in opposition to this bill now ninety six percent of our energy comes from nuclear oil and coal in this country only four percent comes from solar and wind and i am very supportive of creating more energy by when creating more energy by using solar panels but the problem is mr speaker is that this is not going to solve our problems and so when you talk about we've heard many members talk about the price of oil here today when the price of oil is one hundred dollars a barrel it's because there's not enough oil on the market to meet the demand largely because we have refused in this country to drill for oil anywhere we've barred the coast of the east coast the coast of florida we even have cuba now coming in and drilling off the coast of florida and california we don't drill there for oil anymore and even to go as far as alaska the northern self of alaska where we have an oil reserve there we won't even drill for oil in alaska so when you talk about having a hundred dollar a barrel oil it's because we refuse to drill for oil and we rely on oil from other countries to meet  growing demand so when you look at the problems here that this bill creates is that it's taking away tax subsidies to oil companies but what it does is it only hits the top five oil companies and you leave out one of the biggest oil companies in the world and that's the oil company called citgo which is owned by hugo chavez in venezuela so if you really wanted to tax the oil companies you want to tax all of the oil companies not just tax o domestic companies that quite frankly puts us at a disadvantage to those that produce oil in the middle east in venezuela and everywhere else and so if we're going to look at real energy policy here more solar more wind that's all great but folks we're going to rely on oil nuclear power and coal power in this country for a very long time and i think this congress has a responsibility to the american people to lower the cost of energy that the american consumer uses and this doesn't do it this bill doesn't do it so with that mr speaker i urge my colleagues to vote no on this bill and i yield back the balance of my time gentleman yield back the balance of this time for this gentleman from new york right this time i'd like to  minutes to the gentle lady from nevada mrs bird we generally do from the voters recognized for two minutes and i thank the chairman for yielding and for his leadership on this and so many other issues to this just speaker as a former utility company attorney i rise in strong support of this important legislation which will help our nation and my home state of nevada to move towards a cleaner or sustainable energy future i am very proud of my state of nevada our legislature has passed a renewable energy portfolio it mandates by the year twenty fifteen twenty percent of the power sold to nevadans must be produced from renewables energy providers in the state of nevada have built or planned half a dozen major solar power projects in order to meet this requirement and that's just solar this also wind geothermal and countless other projects that can and will help lessen our dependence on fossil fuel with the passage of this bill this bill provides substantial tax incentives for energy produce from renewable resources including wind including solar geothermal bio mass many other possibilities these incentives will provide barely a bare badly needed assistance to companies that are working hard to diversify our energy resources improve the economy by creating green jobs and clean up the air we breathe and our environment i believe energy independence is an economic issue and environmental issue and a national security imperative mr speaker it is time that our nation stop depending on corrupt dictators and nations that financed and support terrorists and terrorism around the planet to satisfy our energy needs we pay exorbitant prices for foreign oil from countries who support and encourage terrorist activities around the world we must stop funding both sides of this war on terror by encouraging the development of renewable energy and energy independence this bill helps move this country in the right direction one hundred two dollars a barrel of oil is reason indulgence of the other side i'd like to reserve our time for a moment i'm reserved time gentleman from new york i welcome the opportunity as is good to recognize mr van hollen from maryland for three minutes gentleman from maryland is recognized for three minutes i thank you mr speaker and i thank the chairman of the ways and means committee for his leadership on this very important national issue the legislation before us today presents a very clear choice does the people's house stand with the american consumer or do we stand with big oil companies and the special interests with gas prices now more than twice as high as they were the day president bush took office the american people can simply not afford a continuation of those failed policies that brought us to this point they're looking to us to take specific steps toward strengthening our national security by reducing our dependence on foreign oil clean up our environment and creating millions of good pain green collar jobs and saving on their costs at the pump now the energy bill that this congress passed last session was a very important step in the right direction we improved automobile efficiency standards and provided greater incentives to renewable fuels and new economy wide efficiency standards and that will help ease the mand for fossil fuels and spur important energy alternatives we left a very important piece of that on the table because the senate republicans and the white house refused to accept the very simple proposition we want to take the fourteen billion dollars in taxpayer subsidies that the bush administration in the earlier congress gave you will gas companies and we say let's reinvest them less reinvest them in a new energy strategy that focuses on renewable energy and energy efficient see and then on the other side they say no we don't want to make that choice we think the taxpayers all of us and all the people around this country should continuing subsidize oil and gas companies that are making record profits rather than making this choice well that's what this bill is about let's make a choice let's use those resources to invest in over eight billion dollars in electricity generated from clean homegrown renewable sources let's expand production of homegrown fuels like cellulosic ethanol and renewable bio diesel so that we can reduce our dependence on foreign oil and let's empower consumers interested in being part of the solution by incentiv g the purchase of energy efficient appliances and advanced plug in hybrid vehicles there's a whole new energy front here out there for us to seize upon if only will make the right choices and instead of looking backwards and continuing to subsidize companies with the hard earned dollars of the american people let's instead invest in an energy future that puts millions of people back to work in green technologies that advances our national security interests by reducing our reliance on foreign oil and which addresses major environmental concerns that we all face with respect to climate change that is the fundamental just feel myself one minute to set the record straight that the underlying legislation is not going to as the last speaker suggested reduce the dependency of the u s on foreign policy in fact every analyst has looked at the yes it will increase the dependency on foreign oil it certainly in the short run courtesy of it seventeen billion dollars in tax increases on energy production will increase prices and that's because the tax increases that are in here are not taxes on profits where you know we've heard a lot about oil company profits but in fact what we are taxing here under their bill is the any investment in enhanced production in other words any time oil company takes their profits and invest said in new production and doing what we would expect them to do we're going to hit them over the head and this should be a cause for concern because we've heard some rhetoric about how energy costs have gone up but since they took the majority gas prices have gone up thirty percent and under the spot market a barrel of oil is gone from fifty five dollars to one hundred dollars a barrel that is not a favorable trend thank you mr speaker that's how come the autor gentlemen please take the conversations off the house floor i can barely hear the gentleman from pennsylvania thomas from new york thank you mrs snake alike do recognize the gentle lady from arizona miss gifford for two minutes generally from arizona to recognize the two minute thank you mr speaker and thank you chairman rangle i am proud to be a member of a congressional body that first recognizes the fact that global warming is happening but is also willing to take action to reduce our energy on foreign oil and foreign energy or at least you know recent reduce our dependence in just the first year we passed the energy independence and security act which authorized a number of renewable energy programs that legislation i think was a first good step towards moving us towards energy independence but what today is missing is a path ass's of the renewable energy and energy conservation tax act now i come from a great state a state of arizona state known for a tremendous amount of sunshine just last week plans were introduced to build the world's largest solar power plant in the in the world it's going to be big enough to power over seventy thousand homes but a project like this will not be constructed without the solar investment tax credits and recent years the solar industry has been one of the fastest growing industries in the country it creates high quality jobs it provides us with tremendous energy independence and it addresses global warming our nation cannot afford to have sunset these vital tax incentives like they're supposed to in two thousand and eight unless this congress acts for our nation for our planet but most importantly for our kids that are going to inherit this planet that we leave behind it is critical that we pass this legislation and we urge our colleagues in the senate to pass this legislation as well thank you mr chairman i yield back the range of my time balance of our time gentleman from pennsylvania i yield myself fifteen seconds simply to know that the senate has already passed legislation which unfortunately has not been brought up by the other side i attempted to offer that  version as as a an amendment to this legislation and i'm afraid the rules committee did not make it in order if we really wanted to move something to the president's desk that would work the majority had the opportunity to do that and has been quick to fritter it or right away with that i would like to yield four minutes to a gentleman who has been a true leader on energy policy in this chamber through many sessions who will be retiring at the end of this session  today i think we have a opportunity to hear him on energy one more time before the ranking member of the ways and means committee the gentleman from louisiana mr mccrary gentleman from new zealand is recognized for four minutes i thank the gentleman for  mr speaker i want to address a couple of issues that have been mentioned here today a number of times the first is this issue of subsidies several speakers that said we need  subsidy to the oil and gas industry where the so called subsidy that's being ended in this bill is the section one ninety nine provision that applies to all manufacturers in the united states it was designed to make american manufacturers more competitive and to create jobs here in this country what this bill does is it excepts from all manufacturers only the all in gas industry so it's pinotage to the all in gas industry it's not removing some special subsidy it's taking away from only the oil and gas industry and a general deduction for all manufacturers in the united states so much for these special subsidies that we keep hearing about the next thing i'd like to talk about is the issue of profits my good friend the chairman of the ways and means committee earlier in this debate they had at the beginning of the bush administration profits of the biggest five the five biggest all companies in america were thirty billion dollars they in the bush administration the profits are one hundred billion dollars hole well guess what at the beginning of the bush administration the biggest five all companies in this country i know a company's invested in exploration research and development trying to find sources of energy for this country about forty billion dollars more than the profits that they had in that year and that investment over the term of the bush administration has grown to this last year almost two hundred billion dollars so you can see ladies and gentlemen that the profits that have been so denigrated here by phone today move pretty much in parallel with the level of investment of our american companies to find new sources of energy to help us meet our energy needs in this country that's reality all this hocus pocus about renewable fuels and sun and that's well but it is a drop in the bucket of what we need to operate this country today and for the foreseeable future so if you want to reasonable well balanced energy policy this bill is certainly not the answer this bill is part of the answer because it it pretty much continues the bill that we passed several years ago when we were in control of this chamber but it makes a bad mistake when it punishes doesn't remove some special suster the it punishes just the all and gas industry for only american companies that is wrong headed it will result in higher prices at the gasoline pump and it's spiteful and it's wrong and we ought not pass this bill and get busy passing a true comprehensive energy policy for this country you about the gentleman yield back gentleman from tennessee and to our country he is a thoughtful fair and considerate legislator he represents the state well he's represented this house well and i congratulate him for his service as the gentleman is so well but the republicans added all companies into the category of manufacturers now they're being taken out so he says we  in and now it would be unfair to take them out they weren't in originally where we are taking them out mr speaker this important legislation is an explicit recognition that our great nation must make critical investments today in the development of clean renewable energy and energy efficiency energy investments that will strengthen our national economic and environmental security for generations to come i appreciate observation that that part of this bill was a good bill he disagrees with other parts that's understandable but we must simply begin to break our addiction to fossil fuels not because the oil companies are bad they're not they produce a product that's absolutely essential and they create jobs good paying jobs so this is not about trying to take it out on the oil companies but it is to say that fossil fuels are wasting resources that is to say we're going to use it up it's going to go away and we need to look to alternatives this morning headline in the new york times states that the harsh reality is quote gas prices soar posing a threat to family budgets the fact is the nationwide average  gallon of regular gasoline was three dollars and fourteen cents this week an increase of one thousand census in just the last fourteen days some energy experts fear gas prices could hit four dollars a gallon by this spring diesel prices are hitting new records daily and oil hit a record high of one hundred dollars and eighty eight cents a barrel on tuesday this again is not about the bad o companies what this is about is america's dependence on foreign sources of oil and on oil generally either it's going away or we will be in the grass of opec of nations who are not particularly friendly to us venezuela saudi arabia sometimes sometimes not iraq ran other oil producing states that can go away in a second we are vulnerable and we need to look to alternatives that's what this bill seeks to do to be clear this legislation alone will not bring down gas prices but it is a vital step forward and may bring down gas prices three years from now or ten years from now or fifteen years from now this bill is nothing less than a critical investment in the low carbon economy of the future that will result in the creation of millions of new jobs it extends the production tax credit for wind geothermal and other eleven and renews the investment tax credit for individual homeowners and businesses to maintain incentives for solar energy through the end of two thousand and sixteen without the prompt extension of these tax credits the new level energy project work stoppage could cost one hundred and sixteen thousand jobs at a time when we're trying to stimulate the economy furthermore this bill will spur the commercialization of the next generation of automobiles by establishing a four thousand dollars credit for the purchase of a plug in hybrid tax credits tax incentives are to get something that you need and might not otherwise get unless you give an incentive i'm going to speak to that with reference to the oil companies in just a second it will encourage investments in cleaner fuels v s that makes no sense in addition this legislation will create incentives for the construction of energy efficient buildings and the retrofitting of existing homes which will reduce pollution and energy use finally the energy conservation bonds include in this bill will spur investments in efficient efficiency create jobs and reduce carbon emissions i would think all of those objectives are objectives that this house in a bipartisan way which seek to achieve now in keeping with this majorities commitment to fiscal responsibility this legislation will not add to the deficit i will tell you that your previous bills dealing with tax incentives could not make that comment rather the tax incentives contained in the bill are offset by repealing eighteen billion dollars in unnecessary tax subsidies over the next ten years that otherwise will be enjoyed by the largest oil and gas companies in america mr mcqueary reference discussion about that last year alone the five largest oil companies that combined profit of one hundred twenty three billion dollars god bless them but it only provokes this question do these companies need taxpayer subsidies to look for new products i'm a big proponent of the free market system supply and demand works the demand for oil is high the prices reflect that demand and they are the highest they've been in history they don't need any incentive to look for a new product the incentive is the free market system which is buying their products for the highest prices they've ever sold it it is foolish to ask the taxpayers to not only pay those high prices at the pump but also to pay additional taxes because their oil companies aren't paying the same kind of level of taxes that they'll last year alone as i said they made the highest profits they've made the answer of course to my question is do they need incentives to see new get new product they do not they do not there's not an oil company executive in the world who's going to say let's not look for new oil when their product is getting the highest prices they've got in history even president bush i want all my republican friends to hear this there are very many i'm on the floor many democrats on the floor but i hope that they're watching on television president bush a former oil company executive said in twenty zero five and i want you to hear this quote george bush president united states for oil executive twenty zero five quote i will tell you with fifty five dollar a barrel oil we do not don't need incentives to or oil and gas companies to explore i'm sure all of you got that at fifty five dollars a barrel the present united states said we don't need incentives for the companies to explore prices now are almost fifty one hundred percent above that dollar figure which the present night state said would obviate the need for incentives with the price of a barrel of oil hammering around two hundred dollars do we really believe that this incentive is justified the president united states said no hopefully this congress today will say no this legislation is a thoughtful effort to set our nation's energy priorities and thereby strengthen our national economic and environmental security last year when we passed the energy independence and security act the president and senate republicans removed a package of economic incentives including the extension of tax credits for wind and solar energy and biofuels we must move towards those alternatives with this bill we continue the fight for this critical aspect of our energy policy i thank the chairman for his leadership on this very important piece of legislation and i thank the republican colleagues on the committee as well for working on this product we may have differences but this is a critical issue for the future of our country and for generations yet  the purpose of the gentleman from pennsylvania writes mr speaker simply to inquire of the other side if they have any additional speakers no gentleman from new york has no for the speaker i believe they also have the right to close in that case i will yield myself the bad once of our time thomas recognized mr speaker i was very impressed by the last speech and i wish i could be as charitable about the underlying product  or about the effort that we're making on the floor today i do want to congratulate the chairman of the ways and means committee for having given our select revenue subcommittee the opportunity to explore through hearings what our tax policy should be and energy policy and i'm hopeful that the day will come when those hearings will yield the results that we would hope i'm afraid today is not likely to be that day the crisis we are facing as a real one mr speaker we're facing a rising global demand for energy of all sorts as the economies of china and india grow we are seeing the phenomenon peak oil playing out clearly we are not going to see the growing reserves that we've enjoyed in the past and increasingly many of the remaining reserves are being mediated by state owned oil companies with ideological or nationalistic agendas are consumers wolf are individual consumers  our corporate consumers are facing the consequences of high prices and yet we're imposing on our production artificial restrictions on new production that is the wrong policy at a time like this and we are facing aging energy infrastructure whether it is a power grid that frankly is facing brownouts or refineries that are now at ninety two percent of capacity so if any one of them breaks down we face a shortage in energy these are real problems and coupled with them as the legitimate concern about extra dalat ease the fact that greenhouse gases from the consumption of fossil fuels are having an uncertain impact on our climb and yet in the context of all of that h r fifty three fifty one is simply not the answer mr speaker it wasn't in any its three previous incarnations it is not now it is bad energy policy and it's bad tax policy there are parts of it the represent a continuity with the policies of pass congresses and i salute the other side for including the expanders but just like a car with an empty gas tank this legislation is a nonstarter it's not going to go anywhere in the senate it's not going to get to the president's desk and today i would ask all of those who join me with these concerns to join in voting against this wrongheaded bill i yield back the balance of my time gentlemen you know affect the balance of the times i know from new york thank you mrs macon first let  me once again thank mr english for the diligent way that he addresses the problems that the four committee has working with which neil makes me proud to be a member and chairman of the ways and means committee i do hope that at some point that will be able to get past the barrier of partisanship to deal with a national security issue a global climate issue an issue that should challenge all partisanship as we move forward and it defies common sense the believe that the oil industry that is receiving billions of dollars in profit would even consider the fourteen billion that we're talking about is almost like grains of sand on the beach we asking them to be partners with us not just for their shareholders which they know how to take care of but for their country to be able to say that our foreign policy should not be directed by where oil is to be able to say at the end of the day you can tell our kids and grandkids that we tried to protect the atmosphere of this great country to be able to say that they all turn it says that we don't have to rely on fossil fuels we have the genius we have the creativity and this will provide the incentives to see whether we can use the when the water the waste sol whatever it takes we have to know how given the opportunity which is bill would give to deal with that we can create products that conserve energy we can increase our surplus in terms of trade by being able to produce products that are far more competitive than what we are doing today what a great opportunity for us and when we talk about a potential recession or whatever the president wants to call  it we have to recognize the the big role that increase in oil has has played with family so used to consider themselves middle income and now faced with ever increasing home fuel costs odum of the of course and all of these things and to find that we have to give them one hundred fifty nine billion dollars because they don't have the ability to put food on the table or shoes on their kids feet or pay their rent to pay their mortgage all of this we can handle these problems if we work together in a bipartisan way and we even go as far as the say in the bill that we don't have all of the answers we we provide  prepared to do these things and so i do hope that people of would reconsider that did not support the five three five one i do hope and congratulate the leadership and nan all time for debate has expired pursuant to house resolution one thousand and one the bill is considered read and the previous question is ordered the question is on engrossment and third reading of the bill those in favor say aye those opposed no the i have a third reading it bill to amend the internal revenue code of one nine hundred eighty six to provide tax incentives for the production up renewable energy and energy conservation clause and insert the following section one finding congress finds the following one the energy security of the united states is tied directly to the national security of the united states the stability of the united states economy and the stability of key oil producing nations to radical jihad to attack the united states on september eleventh two thousand and one continued planning to attack the united states and its citizens if successful that such attacks would direct impact provided key tools to detect and didn't pertain to terrorist attacks and warn countries and within the united states is fired at midnight temporary seventeenth two thousand and seven for without those key tools and capability of the united states intelligence community to detect a bit potential attack has begun to substantially degrade placing at risk the national security of the united states in the energy security of the united states five consistent with a bipartisan consensus congress take immediate action to adopt legislation to provide the intelligence community with strong and effective tools to ensure the national security and the energy security of the united states section two short time gentleman from as the chairman the distinguished of the chairman talked about in his closing remarks and as the majority leader discussed in his closing the energy security of the united states is directly tied to the national security of the united states is beyond me to understand how the proponents of this bill can claim that the legislation before us this afternoon protects the energy independence and energy security of the new united states when our critical foreign intelligence capabilities designed specifically to protect the national security of the united states continue to do great this of course happened eleven days ago with the  expiration of the protect america act again the proponents of the bill say the energy security of the united states is directly tied to the national security of the united states and that is why this motion to  recommit should be considered in order the national security of the united states is directly tied to the effectiveness of the tools that we give to the intelligence community the same radical jihad as groups who attacked the united states on september one or september eleventh two thousand and one are continuing the plans to attack the united states and its citizens you don't have to take my word for it read the declassified excerpts of the national intelligence estimate released by director m the majority leader and others who are proponents of this bill have pointed out america's vulnerability on energy on energy issues because of the threat i object that t your words were the national this is a national security issue and it is imperative that we deal with it the majority leader's words were talking about the threats to our oil supply and our energy supply whether it was from venezuela whether it was from the middle east or other parts of the world we significantly enhance and increase our vulnerability on an energy standpoint when we let the tools of the intelligence community a road and when we no longer have good insight into what radical jihadists may be doing in pakistan or what they may be doing in the middle east or what they may be doing in south america when specifically these are the home bases of radical jihadists and we also have to take a look at this specifically when you say that radek when you take a look at radical jihad us and again getting back to the point the chairman has talked about energy security being tied to national security this amendment will do more to secure this motion to recommit will do more to secure our energy independence and will do more to protect our energy security and national security than many of the other provisions in the bill because it specifically gives the tools to our intelligence community to protect not only our domestic sources of energy and it also  that any other member wish to be heard on the point of order i would like to be heard in opposition and i'm from new york i have all the respect for the proponent of the poll in nevada on the subject matter that he's trying to bring to the attention of the south but the records got to indicate that as this great nation in this house tried to deal with the serious problem of global warming of loss of jobs of national security  variety of things that we should be focused on that the rules should be used constantly throughout this debate for a purpose other than the reason why the bill is before the south it not only violates the palm entry rules but the spirit order no other member wish to be heard the chair is prepared to room the chair will rely on the president of feb twenty sixth two thousand and eight the instructions in the motion to recommit address a totally unrelated measure within the jurisdiction of committee not addressed in the underlying though the instructions are therefore non germane and the point of mordor is sustain the motion is not in order as the speaker gentleman from michigan in light of the fact that i could not explain my motion to recommit fully i appeal the ruling of the chair i moved to table the appeal the question is shall the decision of the chair stand as the judgment of the house from new york yes i move to table the appeal