New House GOP Energy Bill: Protecting Americans From Effiicient Light Bulbs, Low-Flow Toilets

[hatrack]

EDIT

The House version of the spending bill:

1. Slashes funding for renewable energy programs in the Department of Energy by more than $100 million, while boosting funding for coal and other fossil fuels. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) said the bill "targets lower-priority programs for cuts." (The reduction originally was bigger, but a Democratic amendment added some money for renewables and efficiency back into the package.)

2. Bars the Department of Energy from enforcing energy efficiency standards for light bulbs, thanks to an amendment from Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas). This has been a pet issue for House Republicans, who have added the prohibition to previous spending bills, even though the standards originated in the 2007 energy bill that President George W. Bush signed into law.

3. Prevents the Energy Department from using appropriated funds for its climate model development and validation program -- an amendment from Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.). In a statement on Friday, Gosar said his amendment "is not about making a statement on climate change or the validity of climate science," but about "restoring fiscal responsibility and efficiency to federal spending as well as preventing duplication.”

4. Forbids spending to "design, implement, administer or carry out specified assessments regarding climate change," under an amendment from Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.). McKinley added a similar amendment to the defense spending bill in May.

EDIT

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/11/house-energy-appropriations-bill_n_5579345.html

[littlemissmartypants]

1. Thank you. nt

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

2. I'm not entirely thrilled with low flush toilets either.

When they don't do the job, 2 or even 3 flushes probably waste more water than a single high flush. I think the 'dual-flush' needs to be the new standard, where you can choose low flush for urine, or high flush for faeces.

[hatrack]

3. That's what I always thought - the Japanese Dai/Sho models are far more sensible

[yeoman6987]

7. They really need to restore back to the old days with regards to flushing the toilet

I mean we as liberals want to ensure that the environment is protected, but we also want to know when a decision is wrong or just isn't a smart law. We are being laughed at over this. So I say we scrap it and start over with possibly better equipment or technology on saving water while flushing. Because this is not working and the average joe with zero political knowledge of either side thinks this is just nuts.

[AllyCat]

4. This is their PLAN? Oil and coal and that's it. And nuclear.

As long as it's extraction, they are fine with that

[tularetom]

5. What part of drill baby drill don't you understand?

That is their "plan", that's always been their plan. They're appealing to stupid people so they have a big audience.

Oner day we're going to wake up and find that we can neither breathe, drink water, or find food to eat. And somehow it will be blamed on Obama.

[AllyCat]

6. I met someone at our community pool yesterday with an Atrazine-poisoned well.

In a banned area where Atrazine has not been found in their well in ten years of testing. Her kid now has an immune disorder and they can't swim in their own pool, drink their water or bathe in it. But they still have to wash their dishes there. Still trying to find the cause. But already can't drink the water. Air and food are next.

[yeoman6987]

8. Well the problem is that where they are "drill baby drilling",

the economy is through the roof. That is why it is such an easy sell to the American people.