Elections and Energy Bill--Let's Act Now
Dear Friend,
Given the election results, there is no doubt that Congress will make a new effort to enact a major energy bill next session. We don't believe this will happen during the upcoming lame duck session, but we will—of course—alert you if that becomes the case.
Next year, however, we can expect the worst: an energy bill laden with pork for the nuclear, coal and oil industries. It will be like last year's bill, but more so. Expect taxpayer funding of new commercial atomic reactors, oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, reauthorization of the Price-Anderson limited liability scheme for nuclear utilities—maybe even a new effort to establish Yucca Mountain as an "interim" radioactive waste storage site, and more. Let's face it, the energy interests already are lining up to line their pockets.
But it doesn't have to be that way. The election certainly didn't supply anyone a mandate on nuclear power—it wasn't even a part of the campaign dialogue. And remember, with your help, we were able to stop last year's bill.
We can do it again, but we need to start now.
We urge you to take the time now, before the new Congress opens, to write your Senators and House member, and tell them—in your own language—that you opposed last year's energy bill and will oppose any new bill that provides for taxpayer funding of new reactors, or Price-Anderson reauthorization, or name another issue that is important to you. Further, you should tell them that you expect them to oppose such bills, and to do so with all means at their disposal, including filibuster.
A couple of points you might want to make:
*Nuclear power should compete on its own merits, if it is not economically viable without taxpayer support, then it should not be used.
*Nuclear power is not a useful means of addressing global warming; it's too expensive. Allocating resources to new nuclear construction means fewer resources are available for technologies that can effectively help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Normally we encourage you to call your Senators, because mail delivery to Congressional offices is so slow. In this case, however, there is enough time to write, and there is no more effective means of contacting your Senators than a self-composed personal letter. So please, write now. And ask your friends and colleagues to write as well. Address is Hon. (name), U.S. Senate, Washington, DC 20510 or U.S. House of Representatives, Washington, DC 20515.
We know that many of you gave a lot of your hard-earned money to political candidates this year. But now that the election is over, we hope you will consider an additional contribution to NIRS. We are still trying to meet our $100,000 matching challenge grant, and we need your help to do so. Especially those of you who are not yet NIRS members, who know us mostly through this e-mail list and our website, we hope you will become members now and help us meet this challenge. You can contribute through our secure website area (https://secure.campagne.com/Donation/donate.aspx?id=58), or mail your contribution to NIRS, 1424 16th Street NW, #404, Washington, DC 20036. Contributors of $35/year or more can receive our newsletter, The Nuclear Monitor (a winner of this year's Project Censored award for our reporting on last year's energy bill!) by either e-mail or snail mail. Thanks for your help, support, and continued activism!
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