On Thursday, December 6, the U.S. House of Representatives made history. They passed an energy bill, if signed into law, would, that will make some real progress in advancing automobile fuel efficiency standards and reducing greenhouse gases. If you took the time to contact your Representative and voice your support for this bill, we thank you. There is still more work to be done.
This legislation, which mandates a 35 mph fuel economy standard by 2020, is a boon for consumers and the economy. By requiring that we generate 15% of our electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020, the House will shift millions of dollars away from the oil and coal industry profits and create nearly 1,000,000 jobs in the renewable energy sector.
It is the first bill in 30 years to increase fuel efficiency standards and the first bill ever to mandate use of solar, wind, biomass and other alternative energy technologies. While the White House tries to cling to the 19th century methods of energy generation, the people's chamber has moved us squarely into the 21st.
Unfortunately, in the U.S. Senate just this morning, a vote to cut off a Republican-led fillibuster of the energy bill failed. Find out how your Senators voted.
We will be working hard to make sure our Senators get the message when the bill comes up again. And here is how you can help: write to your Senator now and say that you support the passage of a strong energy bill by the Senate.
Again, we want to thank all of you who responded to our call to contact your Representatives. The U.S. House vote on this bill was 255-181.
A margin of that size sends a clear message to the Senate and the White House that the time has come to get serious about energy independence and support clean energy sources
.
Thank you for your help. We will continue to keep you aware of developments on this issue.
John DeCock
President, Clean Water Action
No comments:
Post a Comment