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Kerry Bentivolio on Energy & Oil |
I will work tirelessly in Congress for affordable energy by encouraging freedom, choice, and competition. I embrace all forms of energy, but I will not support taxpayer-funded pet projects like the Solyndra subsidy.
Our country has vast oil reserves. Prohibiting safe drilling at home causes a massive trade deficit and places our country at risk as we become more dependent on oil from nations that are not necessarily in line with our values.
Opening up more public land and allowing more permits to companies that will responsibly drill for new reservoirs of oil in the United States will lower gas prices. The results would be dramatic: it would spur our economy, and make us more secure.
The Contract from America, clause 2. Reject Cap & Trade:
Stop costly new regulations that would increase unemployment, raise consumer prices, and weaken the nation's global competitiveness with virtually no impact on global temperatures.
The Contract from America, clause 8. Pass an 'All-of-the-Above' Energy Policy:
Authorize the exploration of proven energy reserves to reduce our dependence on foreign energy sources from unstable countries and reduce regulatory barriers, [to keep energy prices low].
Excerpts from letter to House leadership:
"We offer our full support for allowing the most anti-competitive and economically harmful tax provisions, specifically the wind energy production tax credit (PTC), to expire. Extending the wind PTC is a key priority for the Obama Administration and its efforts to prop up wind and other favored "green energy" technologies. Under President Obama, federal subsidies for wind have grown from $476 million per year when he first took office to $4.98 billion per year today. A one-year extension of the wind PTC would cost American taxpayers over $13.35 billion. [which] has caused significant price distortions in wholesale electricity markets.
"The value of the Wind PTC today it is worth 2.3 cents per kilowatt hour produced. A wind project that "begins construction" in 2013 could receive subsidies until 2026. By ending this program now we will have given the wind industry a more than generous phase-out for a credit that is being awarded to a mature technology with over 61,100 megawatts of generation installed across the country and 13,400 megawatts under development in 21 states. Over 43% of all electric generation nameplate capacity additions in 2012 were from wind, overtaking natural-gas fired generation as the leading source of new power generation."
OnTheIssues note: The wind PTC subsidy will likely stay in place as long as Obama is president. In general, Democrats support alternative energy credits such as the PTC (which also applies to biomass and geothermal energy), although some Democrats from coal states or oil states oppose the PTC. The Republican signatories of this letter complain about the $5B annual subsidy for renewable energy--but they ignore fossil fuels subsidies including: $3B for fossil fuel tax subsidy; $1B for fossil energy R&D; and a $7B annual subsidy for oil & gas exploration.
A Liberty Candidate will Defend the Great American Principles of Free Markets and Constitutional Government, [such as the views of] Peter Schiff, Senate 2010 candidate from Connecticut, on the Economy: "Strong fiscally conservative principles and beliefs that our economic recovery should be left to the free market through businesses and individuals--not the federal government."
And [such as the views of] Michael McPadden, Congress 2010 candidate from Virginia, on Energy: "I favor tax incentives for alternative energy, but I oppose subsidies, which has the effect of allowing the government to choose winners and losers. I favor tax incentives for research into finding cheaper liquefaction and gasification processes for coal. The private businesses that would be involved in the exploration and development of these American energy sources would also be creating real, high paying, permanent jobs for real Americans in real congressional districts."