By Staff
WASHINGTON – Congressman, U.S. Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and active member of the House Energy Action Team, has been named the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality.
Upton replaces former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, who retired from Congress last week.
Upton, who had been ranking member on the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, will continue to remain actively involved on the telecommunications panel.
"It is an honor to follow in the footsteps of my good friend, Speaker Dennis Hastert, to this formidable position," said Upton. "It is imperative that as we shine the spotlight on our nation's energy policy we have an open, constructive dialogue on the future of our energy needs. As our nation's energy consumption is expected to increase by 50 percent over the next two decades, we must work towards common-sense solutions with a greater emphasis on a number of fronts – nuclear power, clean coal technologies, alternative fuels, expanding domestic oil and gas production, hybrid technologies, as well as conservation and further developing energy efficient technologies. We are a nation of ideas, and with the best research and technology and the brightest minds in the world, we will meet our energy needs and face the challenges of the future."
Last summer, Upton brought U.S. Energy Secretary Sam Bodman and Environmental Protection Administrator Stephen Johnson to southwest Michigan to showcase the region's leadership in developing new technologies to fulfill the nation's future energy needs.
Upton and Secretary Bodman hosted a roundtable with nearly a dozen of the region's leading energy players, ranging from academic research to nuclear power, toured several Whirlpool research and development sites and visited Cook nuclear plant.