[From nobody Thu Apr 9 10:33:42 2009 Received: from a-ess-sen2s.senate.gov ([156.33.195.217]) by mail.turbonet.com (Cactus Mail Server v9.4.0) with ESMTP id PZC24856 for <lfalen@turbonet.com>; Wed, 08 Apr 2009 14:20:56 -0700 Received: from a-ess-sen2s.senate.gov (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by a-ess-sen2s.senate.gov (Switch-3.3.2mp/Switch-3.3.2mp) with ESMTP id n38L8uxP015092; Wed, 8 Apr 2009 17:08:56 -0400 Received: from a-ess-sen2s.senate.gov with LMTP by a-ess-sen2s.senate.gov (3.1.0/sieved-3-1-build-1295); Wed, 8 Apr 2009 17:08:56 -0400 Received: from SHARED-WSH-HT03.shared.ussenate.us (hubtransportpcf.senate.gov [156.33.248.19]) by a-ess-sen2s.senate.gov (Switch-3.3.2mp/Switch-3.3.2mp) with ESMTP id n38L7iLL014350 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=RC4-MD5 bits=128 verify=FAIL); Wed, 8 Apr 2009 17:08:49 -0400 Received: from SENATE-EX05.senate.ussenate.us ([156.33.248.44]) by SHARED-WSH-HT03.shared.ussenate.us ([156.33.248.19]) with mapi; Wed, 8 Apr 2009 17:08:36 -0400 From: "Crapo News Release (Crapo)" <newsclips@crapo.senate.gov> Date: Wed, 8 Apr 2009 17:08:35 -0400 Subject: [Spam] STEPS TO ENERGY INDEPENDENCE Thread-Topic: STEPS TO ENERGY INDEPENDENCE Thread-Index: Acm4ji3tMLtBUsLpQ8+SHuTzxv3ahQ== Message-ID: <EF22B21D8CEAA148B030C28A9708DB9E0C54226B@SENATE-EX05.senate.ussenate.us> Accept-Language: en-US Content-Language: en-US X-MS-Has-Attach: X-MS-TNEF-Correlator: acceptlanguage: en-US Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable MIME-Version: 1.0 X-Flow-Control-Info: class=senate.gov reputation=lowrisk ip=156.33.248.19 ct-class=T1 ct-vol1=0 ct-vol2=3 ct-vol3=4 ct-risk=10 ct-spam1=0 ct-spam2=0 ct-bulk=46 rcpts=78 size=5022 X-Client-IP: 156.33.248.19 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: = Susan Wheeler (202) 224-5150 For the week of April 12, 2009 Laura Thur= ston Goodroe (202) 224-7500 STEPS TO ENERGY INDEPENDENCE Guest opinion submitted by Idaho Senator Mike Crapo As many Idahoans know, energy and climate change issues continue to dominat= e discussions about our future, our economy and our security. During the r= ecent consideration of the Senate's Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 Budget Resolution= , there was an attempt to include controversial cap and trade provisions in= the annual budget resolution. While this effort was defeated in the Senat= e, the future in conference discussions is uncertain. Regardless of the ou= tcome in the final FY 2010 Budget Resolution, Congress will continue to dis= cuss and debate various legislative proposals on energy policy and climate = change. As we seek to solve these pressing issues in a manner that promote= s domestic energy security and economic competitiveness, it is important to= review and build upon the achievements of the 2005 Energy Policy Act. Today's energy landscape is changing because of the 2005 Energy Bill; renew= able energy sources have been developed and expanded all over the country a= nd, for the first time in over 20 years, we are looking at building new nuc= lear plants. One of the most important provisions within the 2005 Energy B= ill was the loan guarantee program which provides private energy developers= access to critical financing required to build the nation's next generatio= n of clean energy-producing technologies. That is why during the recent bu= dget debate I pushed for and was successful in including an additional $50 = billion in loan guarantee authority for the Department of Energy (DOE) prog= ram. The current loan guarantee program is oversubscribed, having received= over $120 billion in loan applications for a program limited to $50 billio= n in loan authority. Doubling the loan authority will provide a cost-effec= tive means to accessing the necessary capital to build our clean energy inf= rastructure, creating significant new jobs in the construction and manufact= uring sectors at the same time. Another important piece of the 2005 legislation was the recognition of the = importance of continued research and development across energy disciplines,= including the future of nuclear power. The Idaho National Laboratory (INL= ) is the lead national laboratory for nuclear research and development (R&D= ) activities. The INL, working with other national laboratories throughout= the DOE complex, is looking to expand the commercial use of nuclear power,= a technology that today provides 20 percent of the nation's electricity an= d has avoided over three billion tons of carbon dioxide emissions over the = last 20 years. Today's R&D priorities include supporting the continued saf= e and efficient use of the existing reactor fleet, supporting the developme= nt of the next generation of reactors, and providing the technologies to re= cycle and re-use spent nuclear fuel economically and in a proliferation-pro= of manner. The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources is already= working to re-authorize the nuclear R&D provisions from the 2005 legislati= on. To support that effort, the Senate unanimously agreed to accept my bud= get amendment that creates the necessary budget space for the next five yea= rs to support these nuclear R&D activities. Clearly, energy demand will increase. My recent amendments to the FY 2010 = Senate Budget Resolution are two important steps that the U.S. can take tow= ard meeting that demand with domestic energy resources. The two amendment= s are, of course, only in the Senate version and opponents of nuclear power= will likely work hard against them. Like the outcome of the cap and trade= proposal, the future of these amendments will depend on the conference neg= otiations with the House. I will continue to advocate strongly for them as= Congress moves through the FY 2010 Budget Resolution process. A sound, secure energy supply must be affordable, environmentally responsib= le, innovative and grow American industry and jobs. In this way, we will = maintain our competitive edge and piece back together our struggling econom= y. WORD COUNT: 606 To link directly to this news release, please go to: http://crapo.senate.g= ov/media/newsreleases/release_full.cfm?id=3D311329&& ...........................................................................= ............ This is generated from an unattended mailbox. If you have constituent comm= ents or information you would like forwarded to Senator Crapo, please do so= at the Senator's website, http://crapo.senate.gov. Comments sent to this = e-mail address will not be responded to]