Floor Statements

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 358, S. 743.

I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendments be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any related statements be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 390, H.R. 2668.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any related statements be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Res. 447, submitted early today.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements related to the resolution be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it adjourn until Wednesday, May 9, at 9:30 a.m.; that following the prayer and pledge, the Journal of proceedings be approved to date, the morning hour be deemed expired, and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and that the majority leader be recognized.

I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. President, it is the majority leader's intention to resume the motion to proceed to S. 2343, the Stop the Student Loan Interest Rate Hike Act, upon convening tomorrow. We expect to equally divide the first hour, with the Republicans controlling the first 30 minutes and the majority controlling the second 30 minutes.

Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that it adjourn under the previous order.

Thank you very much, Mr. President. If the Chair would please let me know when I have used 5 minutes, I would appreciate that.

We have a very important vote in front of us that goes to the question of whether consumers are going to continue to be held hostage by basically having one energy source at the pump or whether we are going to give competition to the oil companies and if we are going to give consumers choice.

I believe we need to do everything; there is no question about that in my mind, but that doesn't mean having a Tax Code that has embedded in it for almost 100 years special tax breaks and subsidies for the oil companies, and the other new clean energy alternatives that are growing and creating jobs in our country do not have the same treatment. In fact, they limp along with a tax cut that expires every year, not sure if it is going to continue, which is what is happening right now.

People are losing their jobs right now in the areas of wind production and other areas because they are not sure what is going to happen. Yet we give preferential treatment to an industry right now whose top five companies are making about $260,000 a minute--a minute. For people in Michigan, the

average wage does not equal $260,000 a year, yet $260,000 a minute in profits for the oil companies, and we as customers, as consumers, have the great privilege of on the one hand paying whatever they want to charge at the pump because there are no alternatives and not enough choices, and at the same time out of the other pocket we get to subsidize them.

One hundred years ago those subsidies probably made a lot of sense. I am sure I would have voted for them as we were starting the new industrial economy and incentivizing the production of oil certainly made sense. I still support the efforts for small businesses and local efforts, but the top five companies do not need taxpayer subsidies right now when they have the highest profits of any business in the world.

So what are we talking about? We are talking about--in tough times and budget deficits and when we need to be focused on jobs and getting us off of foreign oil--making choices that make sense for the future and not the past. That means closing down these special subsidies for the top five companies that, again, are earning profits of about $260,000 every single minute, and turning those dollars over to new clean energy alternatives such as biofuels, wind, solar, electric batteries, and all of the things that need to happen--including natural gas, which my colleague from New Jersey has been a champion of--so that we actually have real competition and we can actually go look at the price at the pump and say, you know what, it is too much; I am going to do something else.

We are beginning that process with new electric vehicles and I am proud that those are being made in Michigan. We have advanced biofuels right now. If we didn't have advanced biofuels at the pump in the few places we do, we would actually see prices a dollar higher on average than they are right now. So there is a little bit of competition, but we have a long way to go.

This bill takes dollars from subsidies that are no longer needed, that don't make sense from the American taxpayers' standpoint or an energy standpoint, and turns them over to continue 19 different tax cuts for entrepreneurs, small businesses, and those who are creating the new clean energy alternatives in the future.

Some of my colleagues on the other side have said that taking away government subsidies will increase prices. It is amazing to me that somehow Friday seems to increase prices; Memorial Day seems to increase prices. I think whatever the market will bear increases prices. But when the CEOs of the big five companies came to the Finance Committee I actually asked them--because folks are saying taking away government subsidies for them will increase prices. I said: How much do we have to pay you to bring down the price? Give me a number. How much do we have to pay you to bring down the price?

Finally, one of the CEOs actually said: Well, I did not say we would be raising gas prices at the pump. I did not hear anyone else say that, either.

So that is what they said. They were not willing to go on record as saying they would raise the prices at the pump.

Instead of throwing huge government handouts at some of the most profitable companies ever, we should be paying down the debt and we should be providing tax cuts for the jobs and the new alternatives for the future, and I urge my colleagues to support this very important bill.

Thank you, Mr. President.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I join my colleagues in honoring the service of the Senator from Maryland, Barbara Mikulski, on becoming the longest-serving woman in the history of Congress. She is an inspiration, a mentor, and a friend, and I congratulate her on achieving this historic milestone.

The story of Barbara Mikulski is the story of the American Dream. The daughter of a grocer in Baltimore, she learned what it meant to do a hard day's work. She got good grades, went to college, and eventually got her Master's Degree in Social Work.

When she was in her 20's, she got involved in a fight to stop a highway proposal that would have cut through a working-class neighborhood. She stopped that highway and saved the homes of the families who lived there.

Those families saw something that day that all of us would recognize today: a woman of passion, hard work, and determination.

Throughout her years of service, she has reflected these values day in and day out as she has fought for America's working families. She understands that our country needs to make things and grow things if we are going to have a middle class and an American Dream. She understands the dignity of work, and how important that is to families who want to create a better future for their children, just as Barbara's family did for her.

And in her many years of leadership and service, she has been fighting every day to create a better future for every little girl and boy in Maryland. She did not come here for the power; she came here to serve. And I think that is why the people of Maryland have chosen her, time and time again, to be their champion in the U.S. Senate.

In the whole history of the United States, 1,931 people have served in the U.S. Senate. Of those, 39 were women. And of those, 17 are serving right now. And of those, only one--Senator Barbara Mikulski--is our Dean and our mentor.

I want to thank my friend, Senator Mikulski, for all she has done for me and for all the women who will follow in her footsteps in the years to come.

Mr. President, I rise to oppose the Roberts amendment No. 1826.

My friend from Kansas and I work together in the Agriculture Committee, and I appreciate the great bipartisan work we have been able to do. But I stand to strongly oppose this amendment. I believe that when it comes to energy, we should do it all. We need more domestic production of wind, solar, electric vehicles, advanced batteries. We absolutely need to stop our addiction to foreign oil and create jobs here in America at the same time.

Unfortunately, that is not what this amendment does. It includes the

Hoeven language that we defeated earlier last week. We shouldn't be building a pipeline from Canada to China. If we build a pipeline, we should use the oil to lower gas prices for American families. It also includes dangerous requirements for drilling in the Arctic and in offshore locations without any safeguards. Worst of all, it ends tax cuts for wind and clean energy manufacturing at a time when families are paying so much at the pump. It doesn't make sense to raise taxes on the businesses that are trying to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and it pays for all these changes by adding redtape to working families when they file their taxes, adding more burdens to middle-class families.

I urge my colleagues to vote no.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to call up amendment No. 1812, as modified, and ask that the clerk report the amendment.

Mr. President, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment to stop the tax increase on American businesses that are creating clean-energy jobs. Especially now when gas prices are going up and families are struggling more than ever to fill the tank, we shouldn't be raising taxes on innovators and job creators who are helping to lower America's energy bills. My amendment extends 19 different tax cuts for innovative businesses that account for 2.7 million jobs.

Let me also say that the oil industry has benefited from special tax benefits for almost 100 years. The cost of this is not offset, it is part of the Tax Code. Yet the tax cuts that will create American jobs to get us off foreign oil have been extended only a year at a time, and they have been subject to different budget rules. This makes no sense.

If we want to see ``Made in America'' again, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Madam President, before I speak about an amendment I have on the Transportation bill, I wish to commend my friend, the Senator from Illinois, for fighting for his people. I understand what it is like to have devastation happen in a State, and I want to thank him and let him know the people of Michigan certainly stand with the people of Illinois and want to be supportive at a time like this because this could happen to any one of us. So I thank him for being such a champion for the people he represents.

Madam President, I rise today to urge my colleagues to support an amendment that will be coming up tomorrow for a vote--a very important amendment for the economy. It is my amendment No. 1812 that would stop a tax increase on American businesses that are creating clean energy jobs by extending the energy tax cuts. These energy tax credits have been so important to stimulating the diversity of opportunity for us in terms of energy sources, and things are beginning to move. It would be such an error to stop or slow this down at this point.

We have right now over 26 different national organizations that have endorsed this, and more are coming, but let me just mention a few. The National Association of Manufacturers, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the American Wind Energy Association, the Solar Energy Association, the Alliance for Clean Energy, Biotech Industry Association, Renewable Fuels--it goes on and on. A number of folks understand that this means jobs, including the United Steel Workers, as well as the Propane Gas Association, the National Electric Manufacturers, the National Wildlife Association, the Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters. The list goes on and on. This has broad bipartisan support, including industry workers and those who care very much from an environmental standpoint about what is happening to our country. All have come together to support this amendment to stop a tax increase on our businesses that are creating jobs through clean energy technologies.

All across the country businesses big and small are creating jobs and bringing manufacturing jobs back to America, building the technology that is powering our future. We all understand that part of the next round in terms of growing a strong economy really is around energy--all sources of energy. I am a let's-do-it-all person, but we have to make sure we have energy choices and opportunities for those businesses to grow.

We have entrepreneurs inventing new technology, building plants, hiring workers, producing cutting-edge new products that save consumers money and, importantly, reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Especially now, when gas prices are going through the roof--and believe me, as I drive around Michigan looking at the gas pumps, it is outrageous what is happening right now--when families are struggling more than ever to fill their tanks, we shouldn't be raising taxes on the innovators and the job creators who are helping to lower American families' energy bills, and that is what the vote tomorrow is about.

My amendment does a number of things. It extends current policy that puts in place this new ability to create jobs, energy, get us off the floor and going. It extends this extremely successful advanced energy manufacturing tax credit that has been called 48C. This is something I was proud to author, working with our chairman of the Energy Committee, Senator Bingaman. We have 43 States where businesses have been able to get a 30-percent tax cut for companies that expand, reequip, and build new plants in the United States to produce clean energy technology.

I want to see ``Made in America'' again, and I know the Presiding Officer does too. This tax cut is what is helping to make that happen.

In Michigan, a number of innovative companies were able to use this tax cut to create jobs, building amazing new products. Here are just a few examples. I was just with the Dow CEO today, someone who is so focused on sustainability and creating energy alternatives. Dow is building solar shingles, among other things, along with new advanced battery technologies.

But the solar shingles are really something to see. They are called the ``Power Shingle.'' You put them on your roof just like regular shingles. You roll it out and install it just like regular shingles, and they generate electricity for your home or business.

These are new technologies that are creating opportunities for suppliers and small businesses all around the Midland, Saginaw, and Bay City area in Michigan.

Ventower Industries builds huge towers for wind turbines. They just opened their plant down in the southeastern part of Michigan, in Monroe, MI. They expect to build as many as 250 wind turbine towers-- the big towers--every year.

On the west side of the State, Energetx Composites used to manufacture luxury yachts. They have turned their facility and their big bays that made those yachts--thanks to the 48C manufacturing tax cut--into a facility that is now producing wind turbine blades and other advanced materials.

My amendment also extends the tax cut for companies that produce energy-efficient appliances; grants in lieu of tax credits; tax cuts for companies that install charging stations for our new, great electric vehicles; tax cuts for companies producing the next generation of cellulosic biofuels, and much more.

It also extends the extremely important production tax credit, this tax cut for wind energy, which supports businesses and utilities that produce electricity from wind.

There are more than 8 million households in the United States that rely on wind energy for their electricity. In South Dakota and Iowa more than 20 percent of their electricity is generated by wind. Nationwide more than a half million jobs are related to wind energy production so far. In my State of Michigan alone there are 31 facilities manufacturing components for wind energy and 6 more in the works. I might just add, one of those great big wind turbines has 8,000 parts, and we

can manufacture every single one of those in Michigan.

When I look at the opportunities around new clean energy manufacturing, I see jobs in every single part for wind, for solar, for electric vehicles. Any of the areas around clean energy creates thousands of jobs.

It is about the future. Now is not the time to raise taxes on these companies. If we do not extend these tax cuts, that is exactly what is going to happen.

Our economy is slowly coming back, as we know, and manufacturing and clean energy business owners have been leading the way. There are nearly 2.7 million people whose jobs depend on this new part of our economy--the clean energy economy. These are good jobs. This is part of moving our country forward so we can compete successfully in the global economy and keep jobs here.

Right now we are in a race with China and Germany and other countries that want to lead the world in clean energy production. They have made clean energy manufacturing a top priority in their tax policy, in their investment strategy. We know, in fact, in China alone they are spending hundreds of millions of dollars every single day trying to beat us in the clean energy production business.

We should not turn our back on the American businesses that are fighting to compete with countries such as China. We should not turn our back on the millions of people whose jobs depend on the strength of these businesses. We should not turn our back on the opportunity to truly diversify our energy sources so we can get off foreign oil and not have to worry about what that price sign is at the pump.

I strongly urge my colleagues to join together on this amendment, to support it tomorrow, to provide certainty for our businesses and our job creators. This has wide backing from business, from labor organizations, from the environmental and clean energy community. It is a chance to come together and create some certainty for a very important and exciting new part of our economy that is critical for us as we climb out of this recession and create jobs for our American citizens.

Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Madam President, on Thursday I voted for the Collins amendment No. 1660 to send a message that it is extremely important that Boiler MACT rules be done right. I have heard from manufacturers, paper companies, and the forestry industry all across the State of Michigan who rely on boilers in their plants. While I strongly support efforts to limit air pollution, I am concerned about the impact of the proposed rules as they are now written on manufacturing businesses and jobs in Michigan.

This amendment is certainly not perfect. I have serious concerns about certain provisions such as the changes to the health-based approach that EPA uses to set emissions rules. This amendment also did not reflect the positive changes that the EPA has already made to the proposed rules. It is my intent to continue working with the EPA as they write their final rules to address the concerns that have been raised by Michigan employers--large and small--and to give our businesses the time necessary to comply with these new emissions rules.

It is critical that the EPA draft rules that protect our environment while also protecting our jobs and our economy.

Mr. President, my colleague Senator Carl Levin and I would like to pay tribute to the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of its annual dinner.

From the very first dinner held in 1912 to the present, the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner has played a significant role in bringing business and community leaders together to celebrate exciting developments in the region. Although the format of the evening may have changed over the years, the mission remains the same: to serve as the premier business networking event of the year and to celebrate the contributions of individuals and organizations that make the region great.

The group of Lansing area business leaders who formed the Lansing Business Men's Association certainly paved the way for the tradition that is celebrated today. After changing their name to the Lansing Chamber of Commerce, Ransom E. Olds, founder of Oldsmobile, addressed the first annual meeting at the Masonic Temple. The association had encouraged him to come back to Lansing from Detroit and build a factory, which he did. This clearly established the chamber as the community leader in fostering economic growth and creating jobs.

I am very proud that the Lansing Chamber founded the now internationally known ATHENA Award in 1982. What started as a visionary way to support, develop and honor local women leaders, has now become a global movement with more than 6000 awards presented in 500 communities in the United States, Canada, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

It is exciting that on February 22, 2012, the 100th Annual Dinner will be celebrated at the Lansing Center. This event will not only celebrate the chamber's history and the many people who made things happen over the past 100 years, it will include updates from current business leaders and the presentation of the 2011 Community Service, Outstanding Small Business and Legacy Awards.

More than just a dinner, this event showcases the businesses and people who have helped make this region into what it is today and shape its future. We are pleased to congratulate the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce on this special occasion and wish them many more years of success.