On the recordSeptember 20, 2012
I thank the gentleman from Kentucky for his good work on this piece of legislation. Mr. Chair, there is a war being waged on energy and on coal in this country. But it's not coming from another country; it is coming from our own government. And we see this taking place every day. Here are a few facts. The United States produces 35 percent of the world's coal, which is more than any other country in the entire world. Most Americans think that we should be using our natural resources to improve the quality of life and to benefit our citizens. And indeed we should. We have more than 250 billion tons of recoverable coal here in this country. Coal produced about 42 percent of all the electricity that was generated in the U.S. last year. Shutting down the coal industry might sound like a good idea at the Sierra Club meeting, but it doesn't make any sense. This legislation is needed because it puts the brakes on the EPA. I encourage my colleagues to support the bill.
