The Do-Nothing Energy Bill

If insanity is indeed doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results, someone ought to check in on the U.S. Congress. For the fifth straight year, the House of Representatives is set to debate an energy bill chock-full of corporate welfare for the oil, gas, coal and nuclear industries and woefully short on innovative policy solutions to address our nation’s energy problems. Despite widespread public and political opposition-and countless analyses documenting the futility of the bill-Congress returns year after year with a virtual carbon copy of the original energy bill introduced in 2001.

While the price tag of the bill has fluctuated over the years between excessive and exorbitant, one thing has remained constant: It will do nothing to solve the nation’s energy problems.