What's wrong with picture? Do gas companies and corporate America really need to fill their pocketbooks while middle-class America struggles to pay its electricity bill? Luckily for the middle class, the CLEAN Energy Act of 2007 helps to reduce corporate subsidies while helping to make energy more affordable for the average American. Although the bill has currently passed in both the House and Senate, the two different versions of the bill need to be reconciled before it can be signed into law. The details below refer to the House version.

The House act closes tax loopholes for the oil industry, reinstates some royalty fees for companies that drill in the gulf of Mexico, and reverses some tax breaks for large oil companies. The resulting $14 billion in savings would fund a "strategic energy efficiency and renewables reserve" to promote renewable resources, alternative fuels and energy-efficiency. As Roscoe Bartlett, a Maryland Representative and cosponsor of the bill, said,

"I rise as a proud conservative and Republican, as well as a cosponsor, to urge support of H.R. 6… Oil and natural gas are not forever. When we burn them, they are gone. The U.S. has only 2 percent of known oil reserves. We use 25 percent of the world's oil and import two-thirds of what we are using. We pump our reserves four times faster than the rest of the world… there is an urgent need for the U.S. to pursue conservation, efficiency and alternative renewable sources of domestic energy."

There are two big time beneficiaries of this bill: the American middle class and the planet. As energy prices have risen, the middle class has been faced with both higher gas prices and high energy bills. This legislation is an investment in creating renewable energy and technology, thereby increasing jobs in these fields in the short term and providing new technology, public health benefits, and lower costs in the long run. At a time when 93% of Americans say that they're worried about the nation's reliance on foreign oil, this bill will help to increase energy independence by developing alternative fuel sources.

But don't forget about the planet! The CLEAN Act will help to increase the development of energy efficient technologies and renewable energies, thereby decreasing our dependence on fossil fuels. Less greenhouse gases, less air pollution...even Captain Planet would be proud!

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UPDATE! On December 6, the House passed the Energy Independence and Security Act, which goes beyond the CLEAN Energy Act to establish stricter fuel economy standards for cars and a Renewable Electricity Standard. However, the current version of the bill is unlikely to become law due to Senate opposition and Bush's veto threat.