Letter to Edward G. Rendell, Governor of Pennsylvania, Re: National Decrease in Petroleum Use

Letter

NELSON CONTINUES CAMPAIGN TO SPUR NATIONAL DECREASE IN PETROLEUM USE

Following their call for President Bush to order all federal agencies to decrease gas consumption by 5 percent each year through 2016, Nebraska's Senator Ben Nelson and Senator Susan Collins of Maine late yesterday urged state, county and city officials to support a similar gas conservation effort.

"With today's sky-high gas prices, public agencies across our country can help by tightening their belts, which will reduce demand for fuel and ease the pain at the pump. They'll set a good example, too. They'll encourage all Americans to conserve fuel and that may cut prices even more," Senator Nelson said.

A week ago, senators Nelson and Collins sent a letter to the president urging him to require that all federal agencies make a 5 percent reduction in gas use annually for the next eight years. Late Tuesday, the senators sent new letters to state, county and city officials asking them to help conserve fuel as well.

"As Americans continue to suffer from high gasoline, diesel and other energy costs, we write today to urge you and your fellow [Governors, county administrators, or municipal leaders] to take the lead in decreasing petroleum usage," wrote Senator Nelson.

In January 2007, President Bush signed Executive Order 13423, requiring all agencies with 20 or more vehicles in the U.S. to decrease their petroleum consumption by 2 percent per year through 2015, relative to their Fiscal Year 2005 baseline. That Executive order also required agencies to increase their alternative fuel usage by 10 percent per year.

"Last week, we wrote to President George W. Bush and requested that he demonstrate the federal government's resolve to help ease the pain at the pump by increasing the requirement for the federal fleet to reduce its petroleum consumption. Specifically, we requested that the President order federal agencies to reduce fuel consumption by 5 percent each year and to increase alternative fuel purchases by 10 percent," wrote Nelson. "We believe that such an effort will demonstrate leadership from the government on the matter of fuel conservation and will aid in the effort to reduce demand for gasoline and diesel at a time when all Americans are demanding action from their elected leaders on this issue."

Senators Nelson and Collins requested that each state and local leader initiate an effort at the appropriate level to join the federal government in the effort. The leaders included Governor Edward G. Rendell, Chairman of the National Governors Association, President Don Stapley of the National Association of Counties, President Cynthia McCollum of the National League of Cities, and President Manuel A. Diaz of the United States Conference of Mayors.

The text of the letter to Governor Rendell is below:

Dear Governor Rendell:

As Americans continue to suffer from high gasoline, diesel and other energy costs, we write today to urge you and your fellow Governors to take the lead in decreasing petroleum usage. We would, therefore, welcome any efforts by America's state governments to join the federal government in taking immediate action to conserve fuel.

Last week, we wrote to President George W. Bush and requested that he demonstrate the federal government's resolve to help ease the pain at the pump by increasing the requirement for the federal fleet to reduce its petroleum consumption. Specifically, we requested that the President order federal agencies to reduce fuel consumption by 5 percent each year and to increase alternative fuel purchases by 10 percent. We believe this effort will demonstrate leadership from the federal government on the matter of fuel conservation and will aid in the effort to reduce demand for gasoline and diesel at a time when all Americans are demanding action from their elected leaders on this issue. We also believe that such an effort on the part of our state governments will further demonstrate leadership on conserving fuel. A combined effort from both the federal and state governments will significantly aid in the lowering of prices and will help ease the pain to consumers. As such, we respectfully request that you initiate a state-level effort from your position as Chair of the National Governors Association and urge your fellow Governors to join the federal government in this important effort.

We appreciate your attention to our request and welcome action by the states to join a nationwide effort to reduce petroleum consumption. While there are no simple answers to the multitude of problems associated with our nation's energy costs, we are confident the combined efforts of both the federal and state governments to reduce fuel use are important steps and a valuable demonstration of leadership.

Sincerely,

Senator Ben Nelson
Senator Susan Collins

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