mercoledì, agosto 03, 2005

From the NRDC:

On 7/26, a final energy bill (H.R. 6) was reported out of conference committee after a flurry of late night and weekend activity. The House and Senate passed the bill on 7/28 and 7/29, with votes of 275-156 and 74-26, respectively. The final bill includes more than $8.5 billion in tax breaks plus billions more in loan guarantees and other subsidies for the electricity, coal, nuclear, natural gas and oil industries. By contrast, the bill includes only about $1.3 billion for energy efficiency and conservation programs, and just $3 billion for renewable energy sources, primarily wind power. Though an improvement over previous versions of the bill, H.R. 6 includes a number of environmentally damaging provisions that ease Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act rules for oil and gas exploration, loosen restrictions on exploration on public landsand require an inventory of offshore oil and gas resources, including in areaslong protected by a federal moratorium. On the positive side, the final version of the bill does not include a liability waiver for manufacturers of the toxic gasoline additive MTBE, which has polluted drinking water in at least 29 states, although the legislation will not outlaw the use of MTBE and will move all MTBE lawsuits to federal courts.

Gee, you think the President will sign it?

We suck. Can you think of an industry LESS deserving of tax breaks than the oil industry?