Today, Ranking Member Frank Lucas issued the following statement on the introduction of The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (H.R. 2454).
"Cap and trade is nothing more than a national energy tax, and the effects will be far reaching to businesses, consumers, and even more so to famers and ranchers. Whether it’s the fuel in the tractor, the fertilizer for the crops, or the delivery of food to the grocery store, agriculture uses a great deal of energy throughout production. The national energy tax included in this legislation would be devastating to our farmers and ranchers.
“My initial review of the bill is that it is almost 1,000 pages and mentions 'agriculture' a total of six times -- three times about a report prepared by the EPA every four years and three times about a new program for the federal government to purchase private land for conservation purposes. It appears that in return for drastically higher input prices our farmers and ranchers will get a report every four years and a new federal program to purchase private property.
“It is imperative that Congress conduct hearings and study this legislation and its implications for production agriculture carefully. There is too much at stake to simply rush a national energy tax through Congress,” said Ranking Member Frank Lucas.
