On the recordJuly 10, 2013
I would like to explain, number one, why I am offering this amendment and then explain, number two, specifically what this amendment does. The reason it is in handwriting is that, after we submitted the printed amendment, we had a conversation with the Parliamentarian, and a suggestion was made to change it, so it was changed. This administration has made it very clear to the American people that it is trying to dictate the fuels used to produce electricity in America, and they've made it very clear that they are flagrantly discriminating and giving preferential treatment to the wind industry. Now, why do I say that? I don't say it because of the $12.1 billion production tax credit that the wind industry has received this year, and I don't say it because of the billions of dollars that the wind industry has received in past years. I say it because the administration has decided not to prosecute the wind industry for violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act or of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act or of the Endangered Species Act. According to an Associated Press investigation, in fact, the Obama administration has never fined or prosecuted a wind farm for killing eagles and other protected bird species--shielding the industry from liability and helping keep the scope of the deaths secret.…
