Ongoing events – here in the US and around the world - are daily reminders of how desperately our country needs a sound energy policy. One only has to pick up a newspaper or listen to the nightly news to know that our national security is one of the most important issues we are currently facing. And one only has to receive their monthly electric bill or drive past a gas station to know that our energy markets are in need of certainty and stability. This is the third Congress during which we have tried to pass an energy bill, and I say it’s time to get it done.

I would like to first speak about oil shale, a promising fuel source found in abundance in the Rocky Mountains. The oil shale in this region produces a very light crude, suitable to fill needs for jet fuel and other very pure fuels. During the last several years a handful of companies have worked to develop technologies that will allow for economically and environmentally feasible development of this resource.

Some of the oil shale resource lies under private lands, but much of it - certainly the richest deposit - is under federal lands. This area, now under the purview of BLM, was formerly known as the Naval Oil Shale Reserve. I would remind my colleagues that, when my former colleague Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell of Colorado, authored the legislation to transfer the Naval Oil Shale lands into the keeping of BLM, the legislation specified that the resource remain available for development. Congress recognized that BLM was in a better position to manage publicly owned lands than was the Department of Energy, but we never intended to place the development of the resources in this area off limits.

The energy legislation we are considering here allows for small scale demonstration projects. But I am also working with my colleagues Senator Hatch and Senator Bennett on provisions that will help lead to commercialization after the demonstration projects have proven themselves. It is bad business practice to pour millions of dollars into research and development projects with no hint of assurance those projects will lead to commercialization. I believe it is important to give companies that are investing tens of millions of dollars into these research projects a proverbial “light at the end of the tunnel.”

As a founder and co-chairman of the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Caucus I am also supportive of incentives that are included in the legislation to continue moving the country’s use of renewable resources forward. Technological advancements in solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, fuel cells and hydro have made great strides. And increases in technology have led to decreases in price. Government has played an important role in the research that will help us reach our renewable technology goals, and we should continue to further those goals. The input and investments of the federal government have been vital in furthering industry and private sector involvement in the renewable field.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory, often called NREL, in Colorado has made an incredible contribution, and has played a very important part in current technological advancements. The technologies being developed at NREL - whether providing alternative fuels and power, or making our homes and vehicles more energy efficient - are vital to our nation’s energy progress.

We must continue to provide incentives for the implementation of renewables use and for the infrastructure necessary to support these renewable sources. These technologies are a necessary step in balancing our domestic energy portfolio, increasing our nation’s energy security and advancing our country’s technological excellence, and I believe this bill takes an important step in that direction.

It is my hope that Congress passes an energy bill this year. I think that we will be making a huge step in that direction when the Senate passes this bill. In closing I would like to extend my thanks and admiration to Senators Domenici and Bingaman, and their staff, for the long hours and extreme dedication that they have given to this matter. I must say that I believe that this is the best energy bill we have produced in a number of years, and I know that there are many throughout the country – and even on the other side of the Hill – that agree with me. The President is ready to sign an energy bill and I am hopeful that we are able to give him one in the very near future.