FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 22, 2001
| WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Daschle joined with
other Senators today in introducing comprehensive energy legislation that
addresses Americans' grave concerns about our nation's energy supply.
Daschle said his legislation would provide energy security for decades to
come, thereby helping to alleviate the instability and astronomical prices
that many Americans have faced in recent months.
"Americans have grown increasingly concerned about our nation's supply of energy for good reason – the cold winter and high natural gas prices have left South Dakotans and many others struggling to pay heating bills; in California, millions are suffering from rolling blackouts because of electricity shortages; and, last weekend, OPEC announced it was cutting oil production by 1 million barrels a day, a move that could send gas prices skyrocketing," Daschle said. "These problems and more demonstrate the overwhelming need for a new and comprehensive energy policy." Daschle said he seeks to jump-start a move toward sufficient long-term energy supply and stability by focusing on three areas: • Increasing domestic production of energy; • Reducing demand by improving energy efficiency; and • Promoting the use of clean, renewable sources of energy (of which South Dakota is a leading source with abundant ethanol and wind energy potential). This bill achieves these goals in a number of ways that, while providing relief as soon as possible, will also establish long-term solutions to the problems: • The bill sets up a system to improve vehicle efficiency. • It provides tax incentives to accelerate and increase the development of clean, renewable sources of energy (such as wind and ethanol). • It invests in the technologies necessary to make our power plants cleaner and more efficient. • It cuts costs by improving the effectiveness of our nation's electrical transmission system. • It provides incentives to improve supply and distribution of traditional energy supplies like oil and gas. "America is faced with a grave energy problem that will get worse if we do not act. This bill addresses our energy problems head-on," Daschle said. "We must also be sensible and responsible in our quest to meet our energy needs. We cannot, as some have suggested, drill our way out of this problem. What we can do is pass a bill that will meet America's energy demands in a way that is balanced, effective, and affordable. Today we introduced such a bill, and I will work hard to pass it so that South Dakotans and all Americans can have a dependable, affordable energy supply."
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