From the diaries -- Larry

A couple of months ago I spoke to you about the energy bill passed by our Republican-led Congress earlier this year which returns billions of dollars in tax cuts to oil and gas companies. While those companies rake in record-making profits, many Americans are bracing for budget-busting gas and oil bills this winter. You can read more here.

The reason I want to talk about this again is that heating costs this winter are projected to be extremely high, but Congress –including my opponent Randy Kuhl – has not acted responsibly to address either the short term or long term issues related to these high energy costs.

Prices for natural gas this winter are projected to hit $1,568, which is 48% more than last year. Homes using heating oil are looking at total costs of around $1,666, which is 32% more that last year.

These dramatic increases in prices for home heating costs amount to an added tax on working families, especially on those already having a tough time meeting their budgets during the holiday season. These extra costs will hit my district, one of the poorest in the nation, particularly hard. But Congress (including my opponent Randy Kuhl, who should be working to protect the people of New York’s 29th Congressional District) recently voted against a proposed increase in home heating assistance for the American people. It is disturbing, especially at this time of year, to see our federal government turn its back to those who most need its help.

This failure to provide necessary home heating assistance is just one part of the much bigger picture of irresponsible behavior and a lack of compassion by our Congress for those who needs its help the most. In total, our Republican-led Congress, including Randy Kuhl, has cut $50 billion from programs that provide vital assistance to the poor. (link) Tax cuts by Congress, mostly for the wealthy, total $90 billion. ( link). Think of it as Robin Hood in reverse: taking from the poor and helpless to give to the rich.

Back to the topic of the rise in heating costs, it is also very important for us to understand that these increases do not just affect home and family budgets. They affect businesses both small and large.

Small businesses make up 90% of the economy in the U.S. and the 29th district, and they are going to be crunched under the rising costs in heating oil. These record increases impact operating expenses, transportation and delivery costs, among other things. Much of these costs will eventually be passed on to the consumer through higher prices for everything from commodities to consumer credit.

The effects of these rising heating costs cover a broad spectrum of various issues. When businesses have to pay more for heating costs, especially with the significant price increases we are already seeing, it is inevitable that people will be laid off in order to make up the difference. Or prices will have to be raised, which makes it harder for them to compete in global markets.

The bottom line is we need to change our outlook on this vital issue. Oil is the driving source for our economy, and until we can move away from it, we will continue to be dragged down by it. Furthermore, no one knows how close we are to tapping all available sources of oil. This is why it is important for us to move away from our oil dependencies.

President Bush has recently mentioned the affects of rising heating costs on families and small businesses. ([link http://www.gop.com/News/Read.aspx?ID=5973]) But, as demonstrated by the priorities set forth in the Energy Bill, his real focus in that section of his speech was on how to help Big Oil and other energy producers. He ignores the short term needs of consumers and offers only token plans on how to move away from dependence on oil.

Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska is even threatening to tie up the Defense Appropriations Bill (link) with his selfish and short-sighted insistence on drilling in ANWR.

We need better leadership to adequately address the needs of the 21st century. There are simple steps we can take that will make our nation cleaner and safer and put more money into our pockets. It could be as simple as phasing in hybrid cars over the next ten years, or beginning to build more energy efficient “green” buildings. Investing in alternative energy and energy efficiency could help grow businesses both big and small, which would provide much needed jobs.

This is not hard, it just takes the right people with new ideas. There are lots of ideas to consider. [Apollo Alliance http://www.apolloalliance.org/], the [Renewable Energy Policy Project http://www.crest.org/aboutus.html], the [Natural Resources Defense Council http://www.nrdc.org/air/default.asp] and even small groups of bloggers ([link http://devilstower.dailykos.com/story/2005/11/6/201459/136]) have offered useful suggestions. And there are many others working on these issues.

But our federal government and its leaders are not adequately addressing either our short term or long term energy needs. Instead they put politically motivated legislation on the House floor, and continue to ignore the real problems we are facing. We can overcome our dependence on oil and provide new jobs at the same time, but not with the current leadership and representation we have today.