John Cornyn: “today I come to the floor to express concerns about the Menendez/Burr amendment, to include the NAT GAS Act in the…”

“today I come to the floor to express concerns about the Menendez/Burr amendment, to include the NAT GAS Act in the transportation bill. This legislation would provide tax credits to promote natural gas vehicles and refueling infrastructure by imposing a user fee on natural gas fuel used as vehicle fuel. Although the tax credits are detailed in the legislation, it is less certain whether the imposition of a new tax applied to Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) used for transportation will cover the costs of the subsidies. Instead of providing more directives from Washington to the marketplace, Congress should be concerned with the overall access to energy, and the President should work to alleviate the pain caused by his policies which raise energy prices. Companies and consumers can make their own choices about what fuel to use, and what kind of car to drive. We should be out of the game of favoring one choice over another, and ensure that fuel supplies are not unnecessarily restricted. Consumer choice should be the driver of technology in the marketplace, not securing favor in Washington. In fact today consumers can evaluate a myriad of vehicles that fit their needs, from hybrids to traditional gasoline-powered vehicles. In addition, the high cost of gasoline and lower cost of natural gas has already led General Motors and Chrysler/Dodge to announce plans to build natural gas fueled pick- up trucks.…”