I did not see anything on the Southwest.

I therefore appreciate Secretary LaHood's strong commitment to safety and his interest in exploring innovative ways to reduce death and injury from impaired driving.

President Obama's stimulus plan is helpful but--as Secretary LaHood has pointed out--it will not be enough to meet all of our Nation's transportation challenges.

The key question that we are here to discuss today is will those technologies see their commercial fruition here in the United States as well.

I wonder what kind of new thinking is going on within the Department to keep pushing this in terms of lowering those numbers.

I hope you can talk a little bit about that initiative, Secretary LaHood.

I hope that we move like our Governor, Governor Richardson, did to push commuter rail especially in the big areas.

Not having the so-called management experience you can move in and really shake things up.

I hope the committee agrees. I hope you all join me in supporting her confirmation.

I am writing in strong support of President Obama's nomination of Mr. Michael L. Connor to become the next Commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

As you all know, the Congress put in place the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which has specific targets in it that we have been talking about today, this 55 percent in 2010 and then 100 percent in 2030.

The purpose of this hearing is to discuss proposals for establishing Federal Energy Efficiency Resource Standard for retail electricity and natural gas distributors.

We hope to learn more about the current efforts at the State level, where the EERS provisions have been enacted.

I am told that Senator Murkowski may not be able to be here or if she is, she will have to be late.

Both bills would create a Federal energy efficiency resource standard that would be independent of the Renewable Electricity Standard.

I would encourage the Environmental Protection Agency to move forward with all deliberative speed to make sure that you do what you can under the law.

I am one of the ones who really believes that we need to act and we need to act urgently.

So I am one of the one who would just urge you, move forward, keep it going, that will keep the pressure on the Congress.