What’s More Important, Congressional Fundraising or National Energy Issues?13 Feb

The U.S. Congress spends far more on time fundraising at the expense of developing policy for environmentally safe, affordable energy to maintain a secure national economy. Here are two headlines that make the point about fundraising:

“It’s estimated that members of Congress spend anywhere from 30 to 70% of their time fundraising.”

“A PowerPoint presentation to incoming freshmen by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, obtained by The Huffington Post, lays out the dreary existence awaiting these new back-benchers. The daily schedule prescribed by the Democratic leadership contemplates a nine or 10-hour day while in Washington. Of that, four hours are to be spent in “call time” and another hour is blocked off for “strategic outreach,” which includes fundraisers and press work. An hour is walled off to “recharge,” and three to four hours are designated for the actual work of being a member of Congress — hearings, votes, and meetings with constituents.”

If there were Congressional campaign fund raising limits, members of that august body would have far more time to address important energy issues, such as:

High gasoline prices

Export of home heating oil

The low level of proved U.S. oil reserves

Potentially unsafe U.S. nuclear power plants

Problem with nuclear waste

Declining U.S. oil production (i.e., Peak Oil)

Escape from crude oil dependency

The futility of crude oil conservation in the United States

U.S. energy policy

Exporting U.S. oil products: Selling America’s energy security

Marginal growth of U.S. wind and solar technologies

Export of home heating oil

U.S. military and clean energy

Shale gas reserves

Energy subsidies

And…saving the best till last, Global warning

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About Dr. Everson

Prior to forming this autonomous vehicle consultant practice, Dr. Jeffrey Everson was director of business development for QinetiQ North America’s Technology Solutions Group (previously Foster-Miller, Inc.).

Dr. Everson has been the principal investigator for collision warning systems for automobiles and inner-city transit buses. These programs were awarded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). For his work on developing a collision warning system for inner-city transit buses, Everson was the first U.S. Department of Transportation contractor to win an SBIR Tibbetts Award.

Previously Dr. Everson held senior scientist positions at Battelle Memorial Institute, The Analytic Sciences Corporation (TASC), Honeywell Electro Optics Systems Division, and Itek Optical Systems Division.

He holds a PhD in physics from Boston College and a MS/BS in physics from Northeastern University.

Contact

For more information about how JHEverson Consulting can help your company with autonomous vehicles, please contact Jeff Everson.

JHEverson Consulting is based in the Boston area but consults for clients throughout North America.