WASHINGTON, D.C. – March 11, 2014 – (RealEstateRama) — During one of the most severe winters in recent memory, U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-3) this week backed a series of bills that will help lower home heating costs and reduce the squeeze on middle class families.
“Across the nation our hard-working families have seen their heating costs skyrocket at a time when our economy is still struggling. That is why I joined my House colleagues in supporting legislation to ease the burden,” Luetkemeyer said. “These bills are important in that they will help families keep more money in their pockets while at the same time ensuring people are kept warm.”
Luetkemeyer voted in favor of the Home Heating Emergency Assistance through Transportation Act which would make it easier to transport propane to areas with shortages. This bill would also extend the Department of Transportation’s emergency declarations until May 31, 2014, providing the certainty needed to address critical heating fuel transportation and distribution issues and offer relief to those impacted by the crisis.
Luetkemeyer also supported the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act, a package of four bipartisan bills that would help harness new technologies and support private sector innovation for more efficient ways of utilizing energy in households, businesses, and the federal government. Also backed by Luetkemeyer was the Electricity Security and Affordability Act that limits the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from fossil-fuel powered electricity plants under the Clean Air Act, nullifying EPA’s recent rules for new power plants and blocking future EPA regulation of existing power plants.
Luetkemeyer also voted for the Responsibly and Professionally Invigorating Development Act that would expedite federal permitting for construction projects, including the 351 proposed coal, wind, nuclear, and natural gas projects identified in a 2011 study, that will create more abundant energy supplies.
Recently, Luetkemeyer sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy expressing his concerns about the New Source Performance Standards for wood burning heaters and urges the agency to reconsider the regulatory amendments to take into account the disproportionate impact on rural Americans and small businesses.
