Hutchinson Endorses Natural Gas Proposal Aimed at Job Growth and Energy Independence
 
FRANKLIN – Rep. Scott Hutchinson (R-Venango/Butler), Republican chairman of the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee, today lent his support to a package of natural gas-related legislation aimed at creating thousands of new jobs in Pennsylvania while moving the Commonwealth toward energy independence.
 
“Pennsylvania is blessed with an abundant supply of clean-burning natural gas,” Hutchinson said. “By harvesting this homegrown natural resource, we can jumpstart our economy while reducing our dependence on foreign energy sources.”
 
The package of legislation, known as “Marcellus Works,” was developed to increase the demand for and use of natural gas across Pennsylvania. The Marcellus Shale is a large natural gas formation buried underneath 54 of the 67 counties in the Commonwealth. Experts have predicted there is enough natural gas in the Marcellus Shale to meet current demand levels in the entire United States for more than a decade.
 
The Marcellus Works proposal includes four key elements: transitioning the fleet of state vehicles to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG); providing tax credits to promote the use of CNG vehicles in private fleets and the development of the infrastructure required to support them; supplying grants to encourage local governments and mass transit authorities to convert to CNG vehicles; and establishing a “Clean Natural Gas Corridor” across the Commonwealth by constructing natural gas fueling stations at every other service area along the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
 
“Natural gas is seen by some experts as a bridge fuel that we can use as America transitions from foreign oil to a more homegrown energy supply,” Hutchinson said. “This is a viable solution to help reduce America’s addiction to foreign energy sources while creating jobs right here in Pennsylvania.”
 
One piece of legislation – House Bill 2103 – from the Marcellus Works package has already been referred to the House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee. Hutchinson believes other bills from the package are likely to find their way to the committee once they are introduced.
 
With less than two months left in the two-year long legislative session, many of the bills will have to be reintroduced when the next General Assembly is sworn in for a new term beginning in January.
 
For more information, residents can visit RepHutchinson.com and click on the Marcellus Works link.
 
# # #