HOUSE BILL REPORT

                    ESHJM 4010

                              As Passed House

                             February 17, 1992

Brief Description:  Asking Congress to develop a national energy policy.

Sponsor(s):  House Committee on Energy & Utilities (originally sponsored by Representatives R. Fisher, Schmidt, Cooper, Wilson, R. Meyers, Prentice, Wood, Heavey, Chandler, R. Johnson, Forner, P. Johnson, Mitchell, Brough, Haugen, Zellinsky, Jones, Kremen, Cantwell, Phillips, Nealey, Paris, Bray, Rayburn, Nelson and Anderson).

Brief History:

   Reported by House Committee on:

Energy & Utilities, February 7, 1992, DPA;

Passed House, February 17, 1992, 97-0.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON

ENERGY & UTILITIES

Majority Report: Do pass as amended.  Signed by 11 members:  Representatives Grant, Chair; H. Myers, Vice Chair; May, Ranking Minority Member; Hochstatter, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Bray; Casada; Cooper; R. Fisher; Jacobsen; Miller; and Rayburn.

Staff:  Fred Adair (786-7113).

Background:  The nation's economy, the trade deficit, national security, and jobs are tied closely to adequate and stable supplies of energy.  Domestic oil production continues to decline and foreign imports continue to rise.

Increasing oil imports, particularly from politically volatile regions of the world, place this country in a vulnerable position.

There is an urgent need to pursue all practicable alternatives to oil use, especially increased efficiency in energy use.  Ethanol, distilled from domestically grown crops and their residues, is a valuable substitute for imported oil.

Summary of Bill:  Congress is urged to enact a national energy strategy and implement measures that will most effectively lead to reduced dependence on foreign oil.

Fiscal Note:  Not requested.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  Ethanol, derived from domestically-grown crops and their residues, should substitute where possible for petroleum-based fuels.  This would both lessen dependence on foreign oil imports and improve our country's agricultural economy.

The neutral testifiers spoke against the other ethanol bills (HB 1591 and HB 2721) but voiced no objection to this memorial.

Testimony Against:  None.

Witnesses:  Representative Nealey (pro); John Doyle, Washington Department of Transportation (neutral); and Vern Lindskog, Western States Petroleum Association (neutral).