Energy/Environment

The House Oversight Committee chairman claims lost tax revenue could also drive up cost of similar loan to Fisker Automotive.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) dared the Obama administration on Thursday to prove that its $2 billion in grants for electric vehicles led to the employment of “thousands of American workers.”

Grassley’s comment came after one grant recipient, A123 Systems, filed for bankruptcy this week. A123 Systems made batteries for electric cars, an industry President Obama has touted as a successful government investment during his reelection campaign.

Sens. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) led a bipartisan group of 40 senators Thursday calling for the Obama administration to release federal heating aid.

The senators sent a bipartisan letter to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius urging her to release Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funds as quickly as possible to help Americans struggling to pay their energy bills as winter approaches.

Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley (Iowa) and John Thune (S.D.) demanded more information Thursday on a $249.1 million federal grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy through the 2009 stimulus, to a battery manufacturer that they say could soon be owned by a Chinese investor.

Grassley and Thune sent a letter this week to the chief executive officer of A123 Systems, a battery company based in Massachusetts, questioning whether U.S. tax dollars benefited a Chinese company.

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Wednesday to waive the corn-ethanol requirements as part of the Renewable Fuel Standards (RFS) because of the difficult farming season.

“In the face of corn shortages and escalating prices brought on by wide-spread droughts throughout the United States, I urge you to exercise your waiver authority to modify the corn-ethanol requirements for the Renewable Fuel Standards,” Hatch wrote in a letter to EPA administrator Lisa Jackson.

Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) called the Army Corps of Engineers’ failure to complete its plan to stop Asian carp from entering the Great Lakes by 2013 “unacceptable” on Friday.

Stabenow pointed to the Stop Invasive Species Act, which was signed into law by President Obama in July, requiring the Corps to act by 2013.

Rep. Jo Bonner questioned whether the administration is trying to funnel oil spill money to Florida to help Obama’s campaign.

House Republicans introduced a bill late last week that would require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reform its Science Advisory Board, the body that acts as a scientific adviser to the EPA as the EPA writes regulations.

Republicans said reform of the Board is needed because of complaints that a majority of people serving on its advisory panels have received environmental research grants in the last decade from the EPA. The GOP also argues that the Board's scientific advisory panels often exclude the private sector, and that more public participation and input into panel decisions is needed.

The administration said it would block an attempt by a Chinese-owned company to acquire four U.S. wind farm companies

Before leaving for the November elections, the Senate accepted House changes to two bills, ensuring that the legislation is on its way to the president’s desk.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced the Government Charge Card Abuse Prevention Act, S. 300, and Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) introduced the Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act, S. 710.