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Comment by Michael & Patricia Maire on July 24, 2008 at 4:12am

I received an email response from Senator Bill Nelson [FL] yesterday. I would like to share with everyone.
I left off the BS greeting, but the rest of it reads as follows;

The oil industry has 32 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico that are leased but have not been drilled.
Why?
President Bush has proposed allowing drilling rigs off coastal States as a way, he says, to reduce gasoline prices. But he must know this won't happen. That's because a report from inside the Bush administration specifically shows that increasing offshore drilling won't have a significant impact on gas prices for decades.

And we simply cannot wait that long on the hope of giving Americans some relief at the pump.

To lower gas prices now by an estimated 25 to 50 percent, we must rein in the real culprits: speculators who are able, because of legal loopholes, to bid up the price of oil to unrealistic and shocking highs. Oil now costs about $140 per barrel, but recent congressional testimony from a leading industry executive showed that the price of crude should only be $55 per barrel given the laws of supply and demand. That means gas prices should be about $2.28 a gallon-- not more than $4.

This is why I have introduced legislation-- S. 3134-- that would ban unregulated speculative trading in oil futures. If Congress will pass this bill, we can bring gas prices back down to earth.

The oil companies claim loudly that they need to drill off the coast of Florida so they can increase the oil supply. But what they won't tell you is that they aren't drilling on 32 million of acres they already have under lease from the Federal government. I think they should drill there first-- in areas where the infrastructure for transporting oil already exists-- before demanding more areas be open to leasing and drilling activities that could take years to produce a single drop of oil.

Americans are being gouged, and now is not the time to allow the administration to give away the store before it leaves office. It's time to do what's really necessary to lower the price of gas: rein in profiteers and speculators. I hope you will be able to support passage of S. 3134. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact my office again.

As I went thru the senates legislation, I found that only 6 other Senators have supported Bill Nelson with this bill.
They are;
Sen Sanders, Bernard [VT]
Sen Klobuchar, Amy [MN]
Sen Boxer, Barbara [CA]
Sen Webb, Jim [VA]
Sen Dorgan, Byron L. [ND]
& Sen Obama, Barack [IL]

With todays government, how much trust do you put into what they say? And if you trust them, is this proposed bill really going to do any good?
What do you think?

Comment by Jason W. Hill on July 22, 2008 at 12:32am

Call to action: The Production Tax Credit was rejected by the Senate. Please contact all federal representatives to support this legislation.

http://capwiz.com/windenergy/issues/votes/?votenum=147&chamber=S&congress=1102

Using the instructions below, when you get to the page with "Elected Officials" , just click the link under "Action Alert" to tell our members on Congress to extend the PTC.

Thanks for your help.
jwh

Comment by Jason W. Hill on July 21, 2008 at 11:58pm

Hi
If you are interested in sending email to your state and/or federal representatives to push for legislative action, particularly for the Production Tax Credit (PTC) that ends in 2008, then please read on. The American Wind Energy Association has done us a HUGE favor by creating a one stop shopping site to allow a person to enter their email content and their zip code, and the site will take care of emailing your federal or state reps. It appears you have cut and paste the your email template twice - once for feds and once for state. But the nice thing is no researching the contact data and sending individual emails. Here are the steps to access their site:

Go to ->

http://www.awea.org/legislative/

Click "Legislative Action Website"
Click " Elected Officials"
Enter your zip
Click "Go"
Then Click "Federal" or "State" (you can do both but not at the same time).
Enter your email and click "Send Message".

I hope this helps.

jwh

Comment by MRW on July 21, 2008 at 3:44pm

I echo Cheryl's comment, Clyde.

Marilynn

Comment by Nathan on July 20, 2008 at 1:16pm

Thank you for your continued hard work and efforts Mr. Childers. You truely are a great American!

"Sine labore nihil" - Nothing without work.

Comment by Clyde Childers on July 20, 2008 at 1:04pm

Dear Senator or Representative:

We the people of the United States of America deserve a coherent energy policy that looks toward an energy independent future.

There are numerous examples of nations working toward energy independence. Brazil, for example, has already achieved this goal through sugar cane ethanol and increases in their domestic drilling program, resulting in stable fuel prices not subject to international fluctuations. Please note that many Brazilian alternative fuel vehicles are manufactured by Ford and General Motors but are not available for purchase in the United States.

Iran has initiated a government-subsidized program to convert all cars to natural gas or bifuel (natural gas and gasoline) capability, and to make both fuels available at filling stations.

China’s alternative fuel of choice is methanol. It’s more corrosive than ethanol but doesn’t require organic food sources to produce, instead being made from coal, natural gas, organic or industrial wastes, or even power stations’ smokestack emissions, reducing greenhouse gases and fueling cars at the same time.

There are many other nations that are either working toward energy independence or have already achieved it, including Iceland, India, Israel, Denmark, and Sweden. The too-often vocalized opinion that the United States is incapable of achieving this same goal is absurd.

For too long we have been hostage to external influences over which we have no control. Reliance upon foreign oil has allowed the politics of our international friends no less than those of our enemies to undercut our economic and industrial freedom. This must stop.

Also for too long we have been polluting our own land, air, and water. All forms of toxic emissions must be reduced to preserve a heritage for our descendants.

The elements for energy independence and a more livable environment are present throughout America, including natural gas, wind and solar power, and nuclear energy. The necessary technology is readily available to achieve this goal, allowing for electricity generation and transportation needs by alternative and cleaner means. All that has been lacking is a logical plan to put these pieces together and the leadership to see it through.

Such a plan has recently been proposed by Mr. T. Boone Pickens. As a citizen of these United States, I ask you to support the modify Pickens Plan in your sphere of political influence and to help us achieve energy independence for now and for our children’s future. Enclose is copy of modify Pickens’ plan

Sincerely,




Our Plan that we would like to be enacted into legislation

1. We need a modern, updated national grid system capable of handling alternative energy sources from multiple providers as advocated by the Pickens Plan. We propose that Congress legislate this national grid for harvesting wind, solar, and other power sources from appropriate locations, including the interior wind corridor, offshore wind sources, the solar corridor in the Southwestern states, and others as established through ongoing research and development. Design and preparation for upgrades and/or new construction should be undertaken in the next 24 months, financed by Federal loan guarantees and a $500Bn grant building program.
2. We need a national net metering standard enacted for all states.

Discussion: Net metering is a tariff that allows you (the people) to have your own renewable energy system located at your house or place of business, allowing you to generate electricity on your premises and trade it against your power usage. Essentially, this means your power meter would run backward when you generated power.

A tariff limitation of 10 kW or 100 kW, as is the case in some states, is generally too small for many businesses. The limitation is tied to transmission line capability, and a recent study conducted in Oregon concluded that 2 MW is an appropriate limitation standard. Several states, including California, Nevada, Oregon, and now New York, have already enacted that standard.

Solution: Make 2 MW the national standard for the net metering tariff limitation and apply it both to individual premises, such as residences or businesses, and to community solar or wind parks.

3. We need community solar and wind farms, not only to supply power within local load and service areas, but also to supply electricity to the grid through net metering. However, the current definition of “customer” in the concept of net metering limits its application to individual locations, such as a residence or business, and does not allow for the application of community co-ops. We need to change that definition to allow for such local initiatives within load and service areas, and to allow for orderly grid management of distributed energy systems.

4. We need a comprehensive incentives program, much like the Europeans but different. We need an energy trust of $50Bn, to be managed by the states, as incentives for individuals, businesses, and industries. These incentives can take the form of either tax credits or rebates to encourage the adoption of the renewable energy technology.

5. We have the technology today for wind and solar energy production, and private venture groups are funding all manner of systems. For example, organic dyes developed by the MIT and new work by spectral spitting by the University of Delaware have the potential for solar efficiencies 50%. In addition to these private groups, the Department of Energy has enacted a $10Bn loan guarantee program, which in June 2008 entered its second round of solicitations. We need to support this program. As well, the SBA’s Office of Technology includes award programs to encourage high-tech and alternative energy research and development projects among America’s small businesses. We need to pass their new Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs to provide $300K for phase I (startups) and $2.1Mn for Phase II (expansion and evaluations) with a national goal of $2Bn for these programs.

6. We need a real incentive, not only for American manufacturers to develop more fuel-efficient and alternative energy cars for the American marketplace, but also for Americans to buy and drive these cars.

Discussion: Today Americans are faced with increasing inflationary pressures on their pocketbooks, with higher prices in the areas of energy, food, clothing, and housing. Many Americans are unable to purchase more fuel-efficient cars or convert their current cars to run on alternative fuels. Currently available and future alternatives include the 30 electric car companies in America, some of which have products ready for the market, as well as large automobile manufacturers with forward-looking NG, Flex, hybrid, and electrical cars.

Solution: We need a Federal tax credit ranging from $4K to $16K to assist with the cost of upgrading American automobiles to a minimum mileage of 35 MPG, with an additional $1K credit for every 5 MPG increase above that level.

In addition, the current tax credit of $4K for converting a vehicle from burning gasoline to natural gas should be increased to 50% of the cost of conversion over a three-year period.

7. Finally, we need to enact a 10-year Production Tax Credit for wind, solar, and other renewable energy sources, forcing an end to the “stop and go” policy of past Congresses.

Comment by Clyde Childers on July 20, 2008 at 1:02pm

yourlettertoyourcongressman.doc
Welcome!!
Mrs. Grey and I are happy that you have joined this group and we hope that your involvement with this effort will be rewarding for you and your children. We have prepared a letter that encompasses the Pickens Plan so you can send it to your congressional delegation. It is easy to send you just click on the web site to your congressional delegation. You can easily find it by Goggling it.

Mrs. Grey and I had fun developing this plan and we shared this plan with Pickens' people and they sent back a "Great Idea!” I just want to share with you our opportunity to make a difference. A copy of the letter is at the top of this comment

Best Wishes
Clyde Childers