[edit] Education

• Educational Training
  • Nothing posted to date
• Educational Funding
  • Nothing posted to date
• Teaching Evolution/Intelligent Design
  • Nothing posted to date

[edit] Energy

• The Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act
  • On September 30, 2009, Senators Boxer and Kerry jointly introduced the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act. In a press release by Boxer, she stressed the significance of the bill's purpose in reducing pollution, reestablishing American ingenuity in the energy field, and promoting policies that will create millions of new jobs.

• Clean Coal Technology
  • During consideration of the Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 (H.R. 6) in the Senate, two competing amendments regarding coal-to-liquid fuels were proposed. S. Amdt. 1628 would have provided a minimum standard in the amount of coal-to-liquid fuels to be used in "covered fuels" (aviation fuel, motor vehicle fuel, home heating oil, and boiler fuel) beginning in 2016. While the amendment mandated the clean coal fuel to emit 20% less life-cycle greenhouse gases than gasoline, opponents objected to the comparison of coal to liquid fuel as similar to gasoline. They argued that liquid fuels derived from coal are more similar to diesel-based fuel, and emit up to 150% more greenhouse gases than petroleum-based diesel fuel. S. Amdt. 1628 failed passage with a vote of 39-55. Senator Boxer voted against this amendment.
  • The competing amendment, Amdt. 1614, would have provided up to $10 billion worth of loans for projects that reduce carbon dioxide emissions from coal gasification (or other transformation processes) by at least 75% and ensure that greenhouse gas emissions are at least 20% below the conventional baseline. Challengers criticized the 75% sequestration requirement as too high and voiced concern that the loan money would end up disbursed to other projects (read the debate). S. Amdt. 1614 also was rejected, with a final tally of 33-61. Senator Boxer voted against this amendment.
  • On July 21, 2009, Barbara Boxer spoke in support of the climate legislation. "We are facing two historic challenges today — the current recession, and the dangers of unchecked global warming, and we have the opportunity to address both with a single solution." ^[1]

• • Sen. Barbara Boxer's Principles for Global Warming Legislation is noted for having no consideration of a carbon tax. The carbon tax would help reduce the amount of carbon emissions as well as give money back to Americans. There were no specific emission targets set and stated that she was supporting a cap-and-trade system. While this system has some positive aspects, it has no guarantee of success and is open to lobbying.^[2]

• Fuel Economy Standards
  • See discussion of H.R. 6 under the Renewable Energy section.
• Nuclear Power
  • Template:Vote-EnergyDeptAppropriations2010Senate
  • Nothing posted to date
• Renewable Energy
  • See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.
  • After a lengthy debate in June of 2007, the Senate passed the Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 (H.R. 6), which seeks to increase America’s energy independence through the development of renewable fuels and the fostering of energy efficiency. The legislation would mandate the use of 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2022, require an increase in the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards to 35 mpg by 2020, and establish a carbon capture and storage research program. Senator Boxer did not vote on the final version of H.R. 6, which passed with a vote of 65-27.
    
    In the face of a veto threat from President Bush, the House passed the Senate version of H.R. 6 with amendments by a vote of 235-181 on December 6, 2007.The final Senate rendering of the bill, which passed with a vote of 86-8, still included language raising CAFE standards to 35 mpg by 2020. Senator Boxer voted for the revised version of this bill. The final version of the bill passed in the House with a vote of 314-100 and was signed into law by President Bush on December 19, 2007.
    
  • In a press release on the final Senate vote for H.R. 6, Senator Boxer said: "While it should have been a better and stronger bill with tax breaks for renewable energy and a requirement for electric utilities to use more solar, wind and geothermal energy, it is still a good first step toward a cleaner future for America."
  • During debate of the Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007 (H.R. 6), the Senate also passed S. Amdt. 1693. This amendment would revise the Clean Air Act to provide short-term and long-term studies on the effects of the increased use of renewable fuels on the environment. It also allows the administrator of the study to create regulations that would mitigate any negative effects on air quality that did occur as a result of the increased use of these fuels. The amendment passed with a vote of 58-34. Senator Boxer voted for S. Amdt. 1693. The amendment, however, did not make into the final version of H.R. 6, which was passed by the Senate on December 13, 2007.

[edit] Environment

• On September 23, 2009, Senator Boxer in a senate floor speech challenges an amendment to the Clean Air Act. The amendment introduced by Senator Mikulski would limit the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to regulate carbon pollution.

• After the House failed to pass S. 22 under suspension of the rules (which requires 2/3 to vote for a provision, but does not allow any amendments), the Senate called an unrelated bill, (HR 146), to carry the omnibus land bill. The bill is a combination of over 150 public land bills and will designate over 2 million acres of land as wilderness, improve the management of currently protected land, establish new water projects, and more. Swapping the original legislation in HR 146 for the land bill was designed to make finalizing the bill in the House easy.
  
  When HR 146 was brought to the Senate, Sen. Coburn (R-OK) introduced several amendments, though only one passed:
  • Amendment 682: to make it less likely that casual stone collectors would run afoul of the criminal restrictions on taking paleontological fossils from federal land (passed)
  • Amendment 679: to strike provisions that would block renewable-energy development on public land
  • Amendment 680: to bar new construction in national parks until the Interior secretary certifies that current sites are up to date
  • Amendment 675: to stop federal officials from using the power of eminent domain to take land from citizens. Critics say this amendment was unnecessary as eminent domain would not be used in any lands included in the bill.
  • Amendment 683: to eliminate what Coburn considers to be "frivolous" projects and
  • Amendment 677: to require an annual report on the total size and cost of federal property.

The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 77-20 on March 19, 2009. Senator Boxer voted for this bill. It passed the House on March 25 and was signed into law by President Obama on March 30, 2009.

• On January 15, 2009, the Senate passed the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (S. 22). The bill is a combination of over 150 public land bills and will designate over 2 million acres of land as wilderness, improve the management of currently protected land, establish new water projects, and more. The Senate voted 73 to 21 to pass S. 22. Senator Boxer voted for this bill. The bill then moved to the House where it failed passage on March 11, 2009.
• Senator Boxer voted for the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to label certain areas as a part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. The bill designates over 700,000 acres of public land in California as wilderness.

• Boxer plans to introduce a bill as the chairwoman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to elevate the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to a permanent Cabinet position, likely involving the creation of a "Department of the Environment". This legislation is apparently necessary to gain intra-governmental respect, giving pro-environment voices a permanent, instead of temporary, seat in the President's Cabinet. Currently, the EPA is theoretically not as powerful as the US Department of Energy or foreign environmental departments.

• As Chairwoman of the Senate Environment Committee, Boxer criticized Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne for failing to appear at a hearing on why the Bush administration has delayed a decision on whether to protect polar bears under the Endangered Species Act. The deadline for the decision was January 9, 2008, and the hearing was held in April. Boxer said that Kempthorne was "ducking [his] responsibility to the American people" by delaying the decision and failing to appear at the hearing. Boxer also noted that the Bush administration did not hesitate to open a major bear habitat to oil leases. Kempthorne said he respectfully declined the invitation to appear at the hearing because he is named as a defendant in a lawsuit filed regarding the subject of the hearing. ^[3]

• In a letter to Secretary Kempthorne of the Department of the Interior, for the Fish and Wildlife Service's delay listing the polar bear as an endangered species:

There is no excuse for the delay-legally or scientifically. Further, we find it very disturbing that while FWS is ignoring its legal deadlines to protect the polar bear, the Mineral Management Service (MMS) is moving quickly to hold a lease-sale on February 6, 2008 in nearly 30 million acres of the Chukchi Sea, one of the polar bears' most important habitats^[4].

• Senator Boxer has also spoken against Japanese whaling ships, in December 21, 2007 letter to the Japanese ambassador, Senator Boxer and several other Senators asking Japan to stop whale hunting.

[edit] Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

• In a floor speech against drilling in ANWR, Senator Boxer argued that proponents of drilling in ANWR admit that " if we get any oil out of there at all, it's not going to be for ten years. And the economically recoverable oil is six months,... maybe."

[edit] Climate Change

• On Nov 5th, 2009, Democrats on the Environment and Public Works Committee passed Boxer's climate bill, with no debate or participation from the committee's Republicans (see full article here). This suggests there will be problems getting votes when the bill comes to the senate floor, probably next year. In justification of her bypassing the committe rule about Republican participation, Boxer said in a statement, “A majority of the committee believes that S. 1733, and the efforts that will be built upon it, will move us away from foreign oil imports that cost Americans $1 billion a day, it will protect our children from pollution, create millions of clean energy jobs and stimulate billions of dollars of private investment.”

• Nov 2nd, 2009, Sen. Boxer announced she will go ahead and mark up climate legislation in her committee Tuesday even if the Republicans try to block her. On Monday afternoon, all six ranking Republicans on committees with jurisdiction over climate change legislation sent a letter to Boxer asking her to delay consideration of the bill until a full economic analysis is performed. The committee's Republicans have objected that the Environmental Protection Agency has not performed a full economic impact analysis of the bill authored by Boxer and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-Mass.) Full text of the article see here Climate Bill Mark Up

• On October 21st, 2009, Senator Boxer revealed new global warming legislation whose purpose would be “to create clean energy jobs, promote energy independence, reduce global warming pollution, and transition to a clean energy economy.” Though similar to its contemporary in the House, there are several critical differences. The most obvious is budget. The Congressional Budget Office has strict funding requirements that force a “CBO haircut” on bill such as Boxer’s. For example, any major bill cannot add more than $5 billion to the federal deficit in any of the first five decades of its enactment. Furthermore, Senator Boxer said she“ would not have a bill that is not deficit-neutral.” As a result, though the same percentages would be offered to low-income Americans to deal with energy bill, or to state-regulated local distribution companies to protect consumers from price increases, they are taken from a smaller available sum. Another difference with the House bill is a tougher, 20 percent greenhouse gas emissions target by 2020, compared to the House’s 17 percent. Though this form of the bill has received criticism from industry and consumer advocacy groups, it is premature as the bill is still expected to meld with the effort of the Senate Finance Committee.

• Senator Boxer introduced S.3036, an amendment to the Lieberman-Warner Climate Change Bill S.2191 to cut green house gas emissions by 70% by 2050.On June 6th, 2008, with a vote of 48-36 (Yea - Nay), the cloture motion to end the filibuster was rejected. A vote of 60 or greater was needed for the cloture.

• In a press release on President Bush's budget propsal for FY2009, Senator Boxer said:

President Bush has once again slashed EPA’s budget, which was cut by $330 million. The cuts include over $270 million dollars from programs that would clean up and restore the nation’s lakes, rivers and streams...The EPA’s job is to protect the health of our families, but with this budget the President is once again sending a clear message that cleaning up our environment is not a priority...

• On April 18, 2007, Senator Boxer gave a speech to the National Press Club on global warming. In it, she said that "The Leading scientists of the world tell us clearly that global warming is happening now and human activities are the cause." She continued saying

The political establishment is awakening to this challenge of global warming, but there needs to be a strong, steady, insistent alarm, not a soft, soothing wake up call. We are running out of time…scientists tell us we have about ten years, or the effects of our global warming emissions may become irreversible. Many have pointed to India and China and suggested that we should wait for them before we act. I say the United States needs to be the world leader. When have we ever waited for other countries to lead? If the United States leads, other nations like India and China will follow.

• On September 23, 2008, Senator Boxer released a statement that the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had lied about the EPA's rejection of limiting carbon dioxide emissions. This caused a carbon-capping bill that Boxer supported to fail passage in the Senate. ^[5]

• With a vote of 51-42 the Senate rejected S. Amdt 1094 to the Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (H.R. 1495). This amendment would have required the Army Corp of Engineers to account for the long-term and short-term effects of global climate change in all feasibility studies or reevaluation reports. Supporters of S. Amdt. 1094 focused especially on the dangers associated with increased hurricane intensity and rising sea levels. Opponents criticized the amendment as being too expensive to implement and refuted any relationship between hurricane intensity and global warming (read the floor debate). Senator Boxer voted for this amendment.

• On November 20, 2008, Boxer revealed her plan for a more streamlined and simple climate bill that would work in conjunction with the EPA. It will include details to cap emissions and an ability for those who emit to trade allowance credits. Another proposed bill includes investing $15 billion in a clean energy program. ^[6]

[edit] Health

• See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.
• Healthcare
  • After being vetoed twice by President Bush in 2007, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) (H.R. 2) bill was reintroduced in the 111th Congress on January 13, 2009. SCHIP provides a subsidy for children’s insurance for families that cannot afford private insurance yet earn too much to qualify for Medicaid. The cost of the program is funded by an increase in cigarette taxes of 62 cents per pack. After the House of Representatives passed the bill on January 14, the Senate voted 66-32 to pass it on January 29, 2009. Senator Boxer voted for this bill. It was signed into law by President Obama on February 4, 2009.
  • On August 2, 2007, the Senate passed the final version of the “Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007” (H.R. 976) with a vote of 68-31. This bill would have increased funding for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) by $50 billion dollars over five years. Opponents saw the bill as too costly and were critical of the funding methods for the program, including a cigarette tax increase (read the floor debate). Senator Boxer voted for this legislation. On October 3, 2007, President Bush vetoed H.R. 976, citing that the bill moved too many children towards federally funded healthcare. The House attempted to override the President’s veto, but the measure failed to pass with a vote count of 273-156. On December 29, 2007, President Bush signed the Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (S. 2499) which extends funding for SCHIP through March of 2009, but does not significantly expand the program.
  • The Senate passed the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2007 (H.R. 493) with a vote of 95-0. After the House passed the bill in April 2007, Senator Coburn placed a hold on the bill because he wanted to clarify language to allow for "business necessity exemptions." The bill passed by the Senate was amended to reflect changes Senator Coburn wanted. After passage in the House, President Bush signed GINA into law on May 21, 2008.
  • On July 15, 2008, both Houses of Congress voted to override President Bush’s veto of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (H.R. 6331), a bill to put off an almost 11% cut of payments to doctors who care for Medicare patients. The legislation offset putting off the payment cuts for doctors by reducing reimbursements to insurance companies that include Medicare patients in their managed-care programs.[1]. The Senate voted 70 to 26 in favor of a veto override. Senator Boxer voted for this legislation.
  • Template:Vote-FamilyPreventionTobaccoControlAct2009
• Embryonic Stem Cell Research
  • On March 9, 2009, Senator Boxer issued the following statements in regards to President Obama's decision to reverse restrictions on stem cell research.
  • In April of 2007, Congress passed the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007 (S. 5), which would have overturned President Bush's ban on the use of federal funding for research on embryonic stem cell lines created after August 9, 2001. Senator Boxer voted for the legislation. The bill passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 247-176 and the Senate with a vote of 63-34. President Bush vetoed both this legislation and an identical bill that was passed by Congress in 2006.
  • After President Bush's veto, Senator Boxer gave a press release saying "No one knows for certain how many lives we might save with stem cells. But denying hope to those who are suffering—when hope is right there for the taking—is disgraceful."
  • In an open letter to Mrs. Nancy Reagan, Senator Boxer addresses her concern on restricting government funding for stem cell research. Former President George Bush's 2001 announcement for funding in stem cell research made funding available for existing cell lines. Eligible cell lines are slimmed down to as little as four cell lines shared amongst researchers across the nation. According to leading stem cell researcher Dr. Roger Pedersen, some of these cell lines are derived from mouse and cow serum. The limited diversity and nonhuman stem cells used raise concerns of the purity of stem cell lines used and the applicability to humans. Researchers in other countries possess greater freedom, which has led top researchers like Dr. Pedersen to relocate his research to the University of Cambridge for better funding and freedom for innovation. Senator Boxer stresses that "the United States is now in serious danger of becoming a second-class power in medical science and falling behind the curve in medical research."
• Non-Embryonic Stem Cell Research
  • In December 2005, Congress passed the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005 (H.R. 2520), which President Bush signed on December 20, 2005. The law "creates a new Federal program to collect and store cord blood, and expands the current bone marrow registry program to also include cord blood." Senator Boxer voted for this bill. The legislation passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 431-1 and passed the Senate by unanimous consent.

[edit] Innovation

• Stimulus
  • On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (H.R. 1). This stimulus bill contains over $30 billion for energy initiatives including the Smart Grid Investment Program and advanced battery systems; $20 billion in tax incentives for renewable energy for both businesses and homes; over $8 billion for augmenting energy efficiency in federal buildings and housing programs; and $7 billion to extend broadband service to underserved communities. The Act also gives the National Science Foundation $3 billion for research; the National Institutes of Health over $10 billion for research and renovations; NASA $1 billion, a portion of which to employ more scientists; and the Department Of Energy’s Office of Science $1.6 billion for energy research. Finally, it provides $19 billion for a modernized Health Information Technology (HIT) system; $87 billion to help fund Medicaid programs; $1 billion for health prevention programs; subsidies for temporary insurance; and $19 billion for clean water and environmental restoration programs. For a more complete listing of the bill’s provisions, click here.
    
    H.R. 1 passed the House of Representatives on February 13th and the Senate by a vote of 60-38 on February 13th. Senator Boxer voted for this bill.
• COMPETES Act
  • On August 9, 2007, President Bush signed the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science (COMPETES) Act (H.R. 2272) into law. The law authorizes the increased funding of the National Science Foundation putting it on track to double funding over the next seven years, increased funding for the National Institute of Standards and Technology and competitive grants for teachers and schools with the goal of strengthening the quality of education in science, math, and critical foreign languages. The bill was passed with unanimous consent in the Senate and was agreed to by a vote of 367-57 by the House after being reconciled in a conference committee. Senator Boxer voted for this legislation. The America COMPETES Act was not fully funded in 2008.

[edit] Research and Research Management

• Funding
  • See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.
  • In her press release on President Bush's 2009 budget propsal, Senator Boxer said:

The President’s budget freezes funding for the NIH at $29.3 billion. At this funding level, the projected success rate for research grant applications will fall to the lowest level (18 percent) since at least 1970. The budget would also eliminate the National Childrens Study, which examines the effects of environmental influences on the health and development of more than 100,000 children across the United States."

[edit] Technology

• See stimulus discussion under Innovation section.
• In the summer of 2008, the Senate met to consider the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (H.R. 6304), which would give retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that wiretapped customers’ phones for the Bush administration shortly after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The legislation also allows the warrantless wiretapping of American citizens for up to 7 days before obtaining court approval. The Senate passed the bill with a vote of 69 to 28, and the legislation was signed by President Bush on July 7, 2008. Senator Boxer voted against this legislation.
• On January 29, 2009, the Senate passed the DTV Delay Act (S. 352). The bill will postpone the digital television transition date from February 17, 2009 to June 12, 2009 and extend the coupon program to allow Americans to be better prepared for the switch. It was passed with unanimous consent by all Senators. The bill then passed in the House on February 4, 2009 and was signed into law (P.L. 111-4) by President Obama on February 11, 2009 .

[edit] Endnotes

1. ↑ http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iFmg0T_WdxBBmXrgOGq3a3f4UsYQD99J29I06
2. ↑ "Climate Change Solutions - washingtonpost.com." Washington Post. 16 Feb. 2009.<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/15/AR2009021501425.html>
3. ↑ Delay Over Polar Bear Protection is Criticized, Los Angeles Times, April 3, 2008.
4. ↑ Barbara Boxer. Boxer Calls for Immediate Action on Polar Bear Listing http://epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Majority.PressReleases&ContentRecord_id=d771b343-802a-23ad-4167-19a9f1047f92&Designation=Majority
5. ↑ Deborah Zabarenko. Reuters. September 23, 2008. http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSTRE48MAIS20080923?pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=10279
6. ↑ Jim Snyder. "Boxer to move 'streamlined' climate bill." The Hill. November 20, 2008. http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/boxer-to-move-streamlined-climate-bill-2008-11-20.html