109th Congress and the Energy Policy Act of 2005

On July 29, 2005, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 or the "Dick Cheney Energy Bill" was enacted by the 109^th Congress. This bill exempted the process of hydraulic fracturing from the Clean Air Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Superfund liability act until this portion of the bill was repealed in 2009. The legislation passed the House of Representatives in HR 6 by 249 to 183 and the Senate via 85 to 12.

The documentary Gasland provides some great insight into this process and the terrible environmental results due to fracturing. It is safe to assume the vast majority of the congressional members who voted on this bill did not understand or even know about hydraulic fracturing. Most concerning is that the House of Representatives failed their constituents. They are the body of government most responsible for representing the people.

Many want to fix this with a larger government with more regulatory powers. In reality, this should be fixed with an effective and efficient government. Let's examine what the 109^th Congress and House of Representatives dealt with in 2005:

• Enacted 20 pieces of legislation
  
• Proposed 6 more that were not enacted
  
• Conducted hearings on the NSA warrantless surveillance program
  
• Passed Some 630 resolutions
  

While some of these resolutions and most of the legislation were legitimate concerns for the federal government, most were a distraction from legitimate federal concerns. The following is an incomplete list of legislation and resolutions exemplifying the most erroneous use of congressional time. This is only a small fraction of such resolutions. All readers are encouraged to look at the entire list and decide for themselves. This author wouldn't hesitate to estimate that more the 500 of the resolutions were a complete waste of effort and time.

H CON RES 16 Congratulating the people of Ukraine for conducting a democratic, transparent, and fair runoff presidential election on December 26, 2004, and congratulating Viktor Yushchenko on his election as President of Ukraine and his commitment to democracy and reform.

H CON RES 34Honoring the life and contributions of Yogi Bhajan, a leader of Sikhs, and expressing condolences to the Sikh community on his passing.

H CON RES 81Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the two-year anniversary of the human rights crackdown in Cuba.

H CON RES 98Expressing the grave concern of Congress regarding the recent passage of the anti-secession law by the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China.

H CON RES 126Expressing the condolences and deepest sympathies of the Congress in the aftermath of the recent school shooting at Red Lake High School in Red Lake, Minnesota.

H CON RES 149Recognizing the 57th anniversary of the independence of the State of Israel.

H CON RES 181Supporting the goals and ideals of National Life Insurance Awareness Month, and for other purposes.

H CON RES 210Supporting the goal of eliminating suffering and death due to cancer by the year 2015.

H CON RES 269Recognizing the 40th anniversary of the White House Fellows Program.

H CON RES 315Urging the President to issue a proclamation for the observance of an American Jewish History Month.

H CON RES 408Commending the Government of Canada for its renewed commitment to the Global War on Terror.

H CON RES 448Commending the National Aeronautics and Space Administration on the completion of the Space Shuttle's second Return-to-Flight mission.

H J RES 66Supporting the goals and ideals of "Lights On Afterschool!", a national celebration of after-school programs.

H RES 22Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that American small businesses are entitled to a Small Business Bill of Rights.

H RES 46Supporting the goals and ideals of National Mentoring Month.

Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption Act

Caribbean National Forest Act of 2005

Theresa Marie Schiavo's law