Josephs joins call for renewable energy, mass transit, not giveaways to Big Oil

PHILADELPHIA, April 15 – State Rep. Babette Josephs joined Sierra Club National Political Director Cathy Duvall on Monday to call for an end to government subsidies for oil companies that are already making billions in profit, and to shift the nation's energy focus to mass transit and renewable, clean energy sources.

Josephs, who joined Duvall during an event at a gas station on the corner of Broad and Bainbridge, challenged the remaining presidential candidates – all three are members of the U.S. Senate – as well as Pennsylvania's own senator, Arlen Specter, to vote for federal legislation that would repeal roughly $18 billion in manufacturing tax credits for oil and gas companies while extending and increasing tax credits for a wide range of renewable energy programs. She also called on the federal government to shift more resources to mass transit.

"The federal government's energy policy continues to be providing billions in corporate welfare to oil companies," Josephs said. "Last year, while gas prices skyrocketed and the five biggest oil companies in the U.S were making $123 billion in profit, the federal government was giving them another $18 billion in free tax money. That's not an energy policy, it's corporate welfare."

Josephs, who is the only member of the General Assembly that relies exclusively on mass transit, said many state and local governments are already pursuing cleaner and more efficient energy policies. During the current legislative session, the Democratic-led Pennsylvania House of Representatives has passed several components of a comprehensive energy independence plan that would lower energy costs for consumers, encourage conservation and invest in renewable and clean energy production and use in the state. The General Assembly has also passed legislation that provides more state money for mass transit systems in both urban and rural areas across the state.

"I take mass transit because it is a much more energy efficient and economical way to travel," Josephs said. "I believe more people would use mass transit if it were available where they lived and affordable. More people would monitor their energy use, drive less and make their homes and appliances energy efficient, too, if they had a reason to do so. That is where government policy and incentives can really make a difference, and that is what is really lacking in the federal government's current energy strategy.

"States like Pennsylvania are already taking action, but we need leadership at the federal level to make a national energy policy truly work," she said. "We can lower costs and create jobs while producing energy that will last us far into the future, but we can't do it with Big Oil. It's time for the feds to take a cue from the states and shift the focus of national energy policy away from Big Oil and the Middle East and back to American workers and consumers."

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