| This was a procedural vote (60-vote supermajority needed) to end debate on the Senate energy bill (H.R. 6). The legislation would have repealed the Public Utility Holding Company Act, which provides important consumer protection to electricity ratepayers; authorized incentives and subsidies for new nuclear power plants; and provided tax breaks to the coal, oil, and gas industries. It also failed to promote energy independence through improving car and SUV fuel economy standards and requiring a percentage of energy generation from renewable energy sources. The conference report also contained provisions that were not in either the House or Senate versions of the bill, such as a liability waiver for petrochemical companies that make the gasoline additive MTBE, and exemptions to the oil and gas industry from environmental laws. Failed: 57 Yea to 40 Nay. |