RUSS CARNAHAN: “Thank you. As you know, the committee report language states that the Energy Department is directed to fund all data…”

“Thank you. As you know, the committee report language states that the Energy Department is directed to fund all data collection, releases and reports on oil, natural gas, electricity, renewables and coal, all previously funded international energy statistics and all ongoing energy analysis efforts before allocating funding to the energy consumption surveys. Unfortunately, this language effectively excludes funding for the Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey, also known as CBECS. This is one of the few tools we have that provides a comprehensive assessment of how commercial buildings as diverse as offices, supermarkets and senior centers use energy. I want to thank the ranking member, I want to thank the chairman, and I want to thank my cochair of the High Performance Building Caucus, Mrs. Biggert, for their engagement on this issue. In fact, there was broad private sector support for continuing CBECS. At this point I would like to submit for the Record two letters that were submitted by private sector stakeholders to the Appropriations Committee in support of CBECS. I just want to read one sentence from a letter that I will be submitting for the Record: ``If funding is not provided, work on the 2011 CBECS data will likely not continue, and the government and industry will be forced to rely on data that is nearly a decade old, resulting in potential missed opportunities to increase building efficiency.'' ASHRAE, Atlanta, GA, May 5, 2011. Rep. Rodney P.…”