Special Reports

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Roll Call Policy Briefings

Energy and Environment

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CongressNow Overview: Congress Works Toward Energy Compromise

April 20, 12 a.m.

With international global warming talks scheduled to get under way in Denmark later this year, stakeholders from across the globe will be paying close attention when a House subcommittee takes up a landmark energy and climate change bill later this month.

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What are the prospects for passing comprehensive energy legislation in Congress this year and what will the bill likely contain?

Bingaman: Energy Bill to Tackle Key Issues

April 20, 12 a.m.

The Energy and Natural Resources Committee has been working toward producing a bipartisan, comprehensive energy bill since the beginning of this Congress. By the end of this week, we will have held 13 hearings and the committee staff will have organized 30 staff briefings on the topics that would be included in such a bill.

Murkowski: Outlook for Passing Legislation Is Positive

April 20, 12 a.m.

There is a strong impetus in Congress and across America to reshape our energy landscape. Prospects for passing a comprehensive energy bill are good, if Congress can avoid overreaching. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has been working diligently on a bipartisan bill since the beginning of the 111th Congress and held the first of several planned markups at the end of March.

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Is it possible to reconcile the need for economic development in industrial areas with the need to protect the planet?

Brown: Clean Energy Can Bolster Industry

April 20, 12 a.m.

Everyone knows that Ohio and the industrial Midwest have been hit especially hard by this recession. What many people don’t understand is that climate change legislation can make our region and our country stronger.

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What will the climate change debate in the House be like this year?

Upton: Energy Policies Must Preserve the Economy

April 20, 12 a.m.

These are very difficult economic times for our nation. Michigan in particular has been hit hard. Despite our dire economic circumstances, Congress is set to embark on a costly cap-and-tax scheme to address climate change, and it is the nation’s working families who are in the cross hairs.

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What is the state of our national parks and how do the health of our national parks affect the climate change debate?

Grijalva: Parks Undergoing Climate Change

April 20, 12 a.m.

In 1850, the estimated number of glaciers in what would become Glacier National Park was 150; today, it is 26. The Joshua trees in Joshua Tree National Park are dying. Our national parks require and deserve attention from Congress and the Obama administration. We must take strong and swift action to combat climate change on federal lands, or these parks and others like them will need new names.

Bishop: Existing Parks Must Be Enjoyable, Maintained

April 20, 12 a.m.

The National Park Service has funding issues, but addressing some of the underlying, contributing factors is more important and will be more beneficial than simply throwing more money at the problem.

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What do your experiences working in the energy industry tell you about where the debate on energy policy should be headed?

McNerney: We Need New Energy Technologies

April 20, 12 a.m.

I was working on my mathematics Ph.D. in the 1970s at the beginning of the first OPEC oil embargo. Like many Americans, I was astounded by how quickly a few countries could threaten our nation’s security and economy. That experience motivated me to pursue a 20-year career in developing new energy technology. I started as a contractor at Sandia National Laboratories, engineered turbines for a wind energy company, developed smart grid technologies and ultimately started my own wind turbine manufacturing business.

Teague: Energy Plan Must Push Variety of Technologies

April 20, 12 a.m.

I am fortunate to be from a state that is blessed with an abundance of the natural resources that are the foundation for a comprehensive plan to move our nation toward energy independence.