After going to 62 Kansas counties, Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, made his way to Sumner County Monday as part of his 105 County tour of the state.
Speaking at a town hall meeting at the Wellington City Hall, Brownback said his main focus was “the 600 pound gorilla on everyone’s back” — fuel prices.
“It’s eating everyone alive,” he said, stating the cost of a barrel of oil has climbed 600 percent in the past six years, going from $18 a barrel in 2002 to $147 this year.
Brownback said there were numerous reasons for the jump in fuel costs over the past few years even though U.S. gas consumption hasn’t spiked but remained consistent.
One major reason, the junior senator from Kansas said, was not a jump in U.S. consumption, but worldwide growth.
“I was in Beijing in the mid 80s and everyone was riding a bike. Then in the early 90s they were driving mo-peds, now in 2000 everyone’s driving cars,” Brownback said.
With the announcement of Brownback’s support of the Open Fuel Standard Act, the Kansas man now says he’s going to stand by a saying.
“Conserve more, produce more,” he stated repeatedly at the meeting.
The Open Fuel Standard Act — supported by Brownback, Ken Salazar, D-Colorado, and Joseph Lieberman, I-Connecticut — requires that starting in 2012, 50 percent of new automobiles, and starting in 2015, 80 percent of new automobiles, be flex fuel vehicles warranted to operate on gasoline, ethanol, and methanol, or be warranted to operate on bio-diesel.
By enacting the act, Brownback says Congress can break OPEC’s monopoly on the international fuel market and give drivers and consumers a choice when it comes to fuel.
Along with the act, Brownback is proposing more energy alternatives be researched and established in the United States. Coal, wind farms, oil shale drilling, and ethanol alternatives are just a few on the list.
The key, the senator stated, was keeping the three E’s — energy, economy, and environment — in balance with one another.
“If you eliminate industrial Co2 levels, you will crash the economy,” said Brownback. “You have to find a way to keep everything balanced,”
There are no sharp changes in government, only a step by step process that helps keep energy costs, economic levels and health of the environment at a balance.
The Kansas man said he is confident the Open Fuel Standard Act will be passed.
“I think we’ll get it passed, and it is not easy to get a bill passed. This makes so much sense to people...I think we’re going to get this one done,” he stated.
Questions from those in the audience seemed to voice concern for the future of local industry due to fuel prices. Transportation for school districts, along with discussion of sweet sorgum crops and tax credits for wind generators and solar panels were hot topics.
Brownback said Kansans are working hard to eliminate higher fuel prices.
“I think most people are doing what they can...Everyone is doing what they can but getting lower prices — that depends on us getting more production here for one, and getting off the oil production for two,” he said.
For more information on the Open Fuel Standard Act, or to send questions or comment to Brownback, go to http://brownback.senate.gov.
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After going to 62 Kansas counties, Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kansas, made his way to Sumner County Monday as part of his 105 County tour of the state.
Speaking at a town hall meeting at the Wellington City Hall, Brownback said his main focus was “the 600 pound gorilla on everyone’s back” — fuel prices.
“It’s eating everyone alive,” he said, stating the cost of a barrel of oil has climbed 600 percent in the past six years, going from $18 a barrel in 2002 to $147 this year.
Brownback said there were numerous reasons for the jump in fuel costs over the past few years even though U.S. gas consumption hasn’t spiked but remained consistent.
One major reason, the junior senator from Kansas said, was not a jump in U.S. consumption, but worldwide growth.
“I was in Beijing in the mid 80s and everyone was riding a bike. Then in the early 90s they were driving mo-peds, now in 2000 everyone’s driving cars,” Brownback said.
With the announcement of Brownback’s support of the Open Fuel Standard Act, the Kansas man now says he’s going to stand by a saying.
“Conserve more, produce more,” he stated repeatedly at the meeting.
The Open Fuel Standard Act — supported by Brownback, Ken Salazar, D-Colorado, and Joseph Lieberman, I-Connecticut — requires that starting in 2012, 50 percent of new automobiles, and starting in 2015, 80 percent of new automobiles, be flex fuel vehicles warranted to operate on gasoline, ethanol, and methanol, or be warranted to operate on bio-diesel.
By enacting the act, Brownback says Congress can break OPEC’s monopoly on the international fuel market and give drivers and consumers a choice when it comes to fuel.
Along with the act, Brownback is proposing more energy alternatives be researched and established in the United States. Coal, wind farms, oil shale drilling, and ethanol alternatives are just a few on the list.
The key, the senator stated, was keeping the three E’s — energy, economy, and environment — in balance with one another.
“If you eliminate industrial Co2 levels, you will crash the economy,” said Brownback. “You have to find a way to keep everything balanced,”
There are no sharp changes in government, only a step by step process that helps keep energy costs, economic levels and health of the environment at a balance.
The Kansas man said he is confident the Open Fuel Standard Act will be passed.
“I think we’ll get it passed, and it is not easy to get a bill passed. This makes so much sense to people...I think we’re going to get this one done,” he stated.
Questions from those in the audience seemed to voice concern for the future of local industry due to fuel prices. Transportation for school districts, along with discussion of sweet sorgum crops and tax credits for wind generators and solar panels were hot topics.
Brownback said Kansans are working hard to eliminate higher fuel prices.
“I think most people are doing what they can...Everyone is doing what they can but getting lower prices — that depends on us getting more production here for one, and getting off the oil production for two,” he said.
For more information on the Open Fuel Standard Act, or to send questions or comment to Brownback, go to http://brownback.senate.gov.
