George,

Bravo to Representative Tom Perriello for voting for the historic energy bill just passed by the House. This bill will set our country on a much-needed new direction in energy. I call to your attention three things in the energy bill that stand out as being of the greatest importance.

First, this is the first time that a house of Congress has voted to curb CO2 emissions. The cap-and-trade strategy sets a cap on greenhouse gasses in the U.S. that will force a gradual reduction of their emissions by 2050 to only 17% of the 2005 emission rate.

Second, the bill requires electric utilities to produce at least 15% of their electricity from renewable sources like wind and solar by 2020, in addition to supporting non-CO2 producing nuclear and the development and demonstration of carbon capture and sequestration for fossil fuels. Wind and solar will be subsidized enough to get them established in the U.S. as a major clean source of electricity.

Third, the bill supports electric cars and plug-in hybrids and provides the incentive to develop and manufacture within our country the batteries to run them. This will go a long way toward reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil and providing U.S. manufacturing jobs.

Our next job is to get Webb and Warner to support the bill in the Senate. I am concerned that moderate Democrats from coal states might refuse to support it. Virginia is a coal state so we have a lot of work to do to get Webb and Warner’s vote -- especially on cap and trade, without which the bill will be spineless with regard to reducing greenhouse gases.

Al Reynolds (Electronic mail, July 5, 2009)