Take Action on Energy

 
Stay until the job is done.

Simple words the people of Nebraska live by.  Doctors don't leave midway through surgery; farmers don't plant half their crop then leave town.

But on August 1^st, the House of Representatives did just that.  On that afternoon, the Speaker of the House adjourned Congress until September.

Though motions to adjourn are most often a procedural move by the minority party to express dissatisfaction with the legislative process (the House doesn't have filibusters, unlike the Senate), this adjournment motion was to leave Washington for the entire month of August.

The August district work period is a valuable opportunity for representatives to return to their districts to connect with constituents.  For districts as large as the Third, having several weeks to travel the 65,000 square miles is absolutely necessary.

But the timing was wrong.

So far, during the three weeks I've spent driving from one end of the district to the other, the number one topic on my constituents' minds is the high cost of energy.  I would even go so far as to say the top five concerns are all related to energy costs, fuel prices, and exploring American energy resources.

It's not just Nebraskans who are feeling the heavy burden of high gas prices - though with our agriculture-based economy, we are hit harder than a lot of areas.  The feedback I have received from my constituents echo what my colleagues are hearing - American people everywhere are feeling the pain at the pump.

Now, students throughout Nebraska are returning to school, and the high cost of energy is hitting our communities in new ways.  From elementary and secondary schools to community colleges and universities, schools at every level are grappling with high prices for fuel.

USA Today recently reported that schools already are bracing for energy troubles this fall and beyond, noting, "Fuel and energy costs are rising so quickly for the USA's public school districts that nearly one in seven is considering cutting back to four-day weeks this fall. One in four is considering limits on athletics and other extracurricular activities, and nearly one in three is eliminating teaching jobs."

As the North Platte Telegraph also reported, "School districts are also looking at ways to save money, as gas prices continue to shatter records. Anything outside of the actual classroom could fall prey to high gas prices, which includes athletic programs."

Gas prices have risen from an average of $2.33 per gallon since January 2007 to $3.78 per gallon today, while diesel prices - particularly important for school transportation purposes - have risen from $2.44 per gallon to $4.47 per gallon today.

A web-based initiative has been launched focusing on high energy prices impacting the coming school year. Found at the House Education & Labor Committee's Republican website (http://republicans.edlabor.house.gov/energysurvey.shtml ), this survey will gather input from school officials, teachers, and families to determine the extent of the energy crisis in our schools - input which will be provided to both parties this fall to encourage decisive action by Congress to increase production of American energy to lower fuel costs. 

Simply put, Nebraskans - like all Americans - want and deserve a comprehensive solution.

We've taken some small steps, such as halting shipments to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, but this is in no way a long term solution.  What's more, it's dangerous to continue to siphon fuel reserved for a sudden, national emergency, especially when that fuel itself has been imported.

When Congress voted by just one vote (213 to 212) to adjourn, many of my colleagues, both Republican and Democrats, called for Congress to vote on a comprehensive energy solution and to work to find a solution to the energy crunch affecting America.

On the last day of session, I joined a group of lawmakers who remained on the House floor, even though the lights were out and the microphones turned off.  C-SPAN cameras had stopped rolling, so we addressed the gallery audience.

I took part in the initial day of what we now refer to as the "shadow sessions" because I refused to abandon the American people's agenda. I called on Congress to return and finish the job the American people so desperately need us to finish.

Since then, every day, lawmakers from around the country have given up all or part of their August to speak on the House floor, calling on Congress to return.  In all, over 130 individual members have chosen to speak to the American people from Washington.

Some cynics have called this a political stunt.  I disagree - we simply cannot dismiss the fact a majority of Americans want Congress to act on comprehensive energy legislation such as the American Energy Act.  In fact, at one stop, a constituent gave me an emergency light to take back to Washington to "turn the lights back on," as she put it.

And a similar message is being heard by lawmakers across the country.  Recently, Speaker Nancy Pelosi indicated a willingness to reverse her opposition to an open, fair debate and vote on energy legislation.  For too long, commonsense legislation has been held hostage to the majority party's legislative maneuvers.  There are a number of legislative options, and I would like to see Congress take them up as soon as possible.

I want to thank the Nebraskans who expressed their concerns over rising gas prices to me personally and through contacts to my office.

I agree, we need to act on a comprehensive energy policy - one which includes all sources of American energy from tapping into off-shore oil reserves to research and development of alternative fuels - as soon as possible.  I will continue to call for a vote on such a proposal, and I urge all Nebraskans to join with me.