WASHINGTON (July 30, 2008) — Statement by Linda Lance, vice president for public policy at The Wilderness Society, on Tuesday night’s 53-43 defeat of cloture on Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008 (H.R. 6049) and Wednesday morning’s 51-43 defeat of cloture on the “The Jobs, Energy, Families, and Disaster Relief Act of 2008” (S. 3335):
“These votes today demonstrate a total lack of concern by some members of the Senate about the issue of high energy prices. Those members voting against cloture have no interest in truly addressing the energy issues that Americans face but only seek to protect subsidies for Big Oil by delaying real solutions.
“It is widely agreed that there can be no permanent solution to our dependence on foreign oil and rising energy prices until we begin to rely less on oil—most of which is in other parts of the world—and more on renewable energy, which can be produced here in limitless supply. The tax incentives defeated this week are a critical part of this solution. These votes unfortunately move us even further away from the forward-thinking energy policy that is vitally needed to stimulate America’s economy and lower consumer energy costs. They also mark the eleventh and twelfth times the Senate has failed to pass incentives to encourage investment in new energy technologies.
“These defeats are not because of a disagreement over the need to provide incentives for these energy solutions. Driven by the demands of the few, the defeat of these bills ignores the needs of everyone else. The Bush administration and the oil and gas industry’s Congressional allies continue to oppose the repeal of any portion of the $18 billion in tax payer subsidies for oil companies that could be used to pay for renewable technology incentives. This opposition continues even as the oil and gas industry rakes in record profits, with BP yesterday reporting a 28 percent increase in second quarter profits to $9.47 billion. American consumers are being held hostage by the demands of the oil and gas industry to retain their subsidies and to control more public lands.
“We are dismayed that the oil and gas industry’s allies in the Senate have blocked passage of H.R. 6049 and S. 3335. Every day that passes without any real action takes a toll on jobs and investment in clean energy projects. Most of the incentives will expire at the end of the year, and a disruption of the incentives would lead to layoffs and a decrease in much needed private capital flowing to these industries, as well as further delay in turning to real and permanent solutions to our energy needs."
