Washington, D.C. - Congressman Brian Baird today voted against HR 3893, the second special interest energy bill forced through Congress this year.       

“Congress is taking advantage of the tragedy of Katrina to pass this travesty of legislation,” Congressman Baird said.  “This is a corporate mugging of the taxpayers, the environment, and the democratic process.”

The special interest energy bill will:

• Grant the President the authority to designate federal sites for new oil refineries.
• Give taxpayer dollars to oil refinery owners, who have reaped record-breaking profits in recent years, for the costs they have incurred in complying with federal and state laws.  
• Rollback environmental regulations for oil refineries and power plants.
• Give money to the Energy Department for a carpool PR campaign.
• Weaken gas price-gouging enforcement and ignore natural gas, home heating oil, and propane prices.
• Authorize government studies on carpooling, price-gouging, and hydrogen fuel, but stipulate no specific plans for utilizing the data gathered.

“In a time of record-breaking oil prices, conflict in the Middle East, and global warming, our nation desperately needs a new approach to its outdated energy policy,” Congressman Baird said.  “Instead, we have another energy bill that continues to squeeze average Americans at the gas pump and thermostat, and throw billions of dollars in tax breaks and subsidies at some of the wealthiest oil and gas companies in the world. 

“Ordinary Americans should not have to foot the legal bills of private energy conglomerates because Congress caved to corporate greed,” Congressman Baird continued.  “This bill does nothing to prevent corporate price-gouging.  Instead, it hurts small business gas station owners the most.”   

“This bill rolls back environmental regulations and undermines the Clean Air Act, affecting the air our children breathe, the water they drink, and the ground they play on,” said Congressman Baird.  “Congress is once again putting special interests above the health and well-being of the American people.”

HR 3893 narrowly passed the House  by a vote of 212 to 210.  

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