http://energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Print&PressRelease_id=2...

June 17th, 2009

ENERGY BILL INCLUDES PRODUCTION

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: ROBERT DILLON (202) 224-6977

JUNE 17, 2009 or ANNE JOHNSON (202) 224-7875

AGAINST ALL ODDS: ENERGY BILL INCLUDES PRODUCTION

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today voted in favor of passing a
comprehensive energy bill to improve the nation’s energy system.

The American Clean Energy Leadership Act of 2009 will enhance energy efficiency, boost investment
in renewable energy, open promising new areas in the Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas production,
inventory offshore resources, aid construction of a natural gas pipeline from Alaska, improve the
nation’s aging transmission grid and reaffirm the nation’s commitment to nuclear power.

The bill passed the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee by a vote of 15 to 8.

“Today, this committee reaches the end of a long and sometimes bumpy road toward reporting out
energy legislation,” Murkowski said. “Despite an uphill fight against Democrats’ three-vote majority,
we were able to include a number of provisions that will lead to more domestic production of the
conventional energy we need to drive this country.”

“While I support this bill in its present form, we simply must do more to increase our domestic
production and use of nuclear energy,” Murkowski said. “I will continue to press for those provisions
on the Senate floor.”

Attempts by Murkowski and others on the committee to permit the use of directional drilling
technology to extract oil and gas from ANWR without any surface presence, and allow revenue
sharing between states and the federal government from oil and gas production in the OCS, were
blocked by Democrats.

“Renewables are an important part of our energy mix, but the reality is that we will remain
dependent on fossil fuels for decades to come,” Murkowski said. “We should not be importing oil
and gas that we can produce here at home. Taking responsibility for our own energy needs will
create good jobs and improve our energy security.”

Highlights of the American Clean Energy Leadership Act of 2009, include:

Clean Energy Deployment Administration – provides for increased capitalization of clean

energy projects;
Oil and gas – opens portions of the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, including Destin Dome, to oil
and gas leasing, and establishes a one-stop permitting office in Alaska for offshore leasing in

1 of 2 6/18/2009 10:11 AM
 http://energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Print&PressRelease_id=2...

the Chukchi and Beaufort seas;

Alaska natural gas pipeline – increases federal loan guarantee for the developers of a gas
pipeline project from $18 billion to $30 billion, and allows access to the Federal Financing
Bank;
Energy workforce development – provides assistance to institutions of higher learning
and community colleges that place an emphasis on energy jobs and help train the energy
workers of the future;
Energy efficiency – establishes new efficiency standards for several consumer products and
makes changes that will allow standards to be updated more often and be market driven;
Renewable electricity standard – requires utilities to generate 15 percent of their
electricity with renewable energy by 2021, and contains consumer off-ramps for increased
costs and the opportunity to petition for a variance due to transmission constraints, includes
expanded definition of biomass, eligible hydropower and removes nuclear uprates from the
baseline;
Nuclear – provides clear statement of the federal government’s support for nuclear energy,
as well as encourages resolution of the spent nuclear fuel issue.
Transmission – addresses planning and siting of electrical transmission infrastructure by
encouraging states to develop plans and giving FERC backstop siting authority, ties cost
allocation to benefits;
Cyber security – increases authority for both FERC and the Department of Energy to protect
the nation’s electrical grid from cyber security threats and vulnerabilities;
Carbon sequestration – allows for indemnification of up to 10 demonstration projects;
Modification of Section 526 – allows the government, and in particularly the military, to
purchase Canadian tar sand oil.

The energy bill now goes to the Senate floor for consideration and final passage.

####

For further information, please contact Robert Dillon at 202.224.6977 or

Robert_dillon@energy.senate.gov or Anne Johnson at 202.224.7875 or
anne_johnson@energy.senate.gov.
Visit our website at http://energy.senate.gov/public/

2 of 2 6/18/2009 10:11 AM