2005S0314-1  02/21/05


By:  Fraser                                                     S.C.R. No. 6  



CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The price of natural gas in the United States is among the highest in the industrial world and continues to show great volatility; and WHEREAS, Abnormally high natural gas prices have been an unanticipated burden on the economy of the United States over the past 18 months; and WHEREAS, The United States is reliant on natural gas in our national energy supply, and forecasts predict a future imbalance between natural gas supply and demand; and WHEREAS, Manufacturers, farmers, small businesses, local governments, and retailers are struggling from the uncertainty in natural gas prices, and thousands of jobs are threatened because many businesses use natural gas as a raw material as well as a source of energy; and WHEREAS, The natural gas imbalance is not a free-market problem; the high price of natural gas is created by governmental policies that increase demand for natural gas while impeding the development of a greater supply of natural gas by discouraging more exploration and production; and WHEREAS, The United States needs policies to encourage and ensure the safe and efficient domestic production and importation of natural gas; and WHEREAS, The State of Texas supports a sound, rational domestic energy policy; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the 79th Legislature of the State of Texas hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to enact legislation in the 109th Congress establishing a domestic energy policy that will ensure an adequate supply of natural gas, the appropriate infrastructure, and a concerted national effort to promote greater energy efficiency and that will open promising new areas for environmentally responsible natural gas production; and, be it further RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official copies of this resolution to the president of the United States Senate, to the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of the Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. Urging the United States Congress to establish a domestic energy policy to ensure an adequate supply of natural gas and the appropriate infrastructure, to promote greater energy efficiency, and to open promising new areas for environmentally responsible natural gas production.