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152.710 Legislative findings and determinations.
The General Assembly finds and determines that:
(1) The United States currently imports almost sixty percent (60%) of its petroleum
needs, and nearly half of these imports come from highly unstable regions and
countries. It is projected that this percentage will grow to over seventy percent
(70%) by 2025 unless the United States changes its policy on producing liquid
fuels;
(2) Events in the Middle East, Africa, and South America, coupled with Chinas
efforts to secure world oil reserves and production facilities, demonstrate that
increasing reliance on foreign sources of petroleum threatens the homeland
security of the United States. Americas military is increasingly looking at the
potential of alternate liquid fuels produced from fossil energy resources or
agricultural materials as a reliable, secure source of fuel;
(3) Petroleum imports are the single largest cause of the nations negative
balance of trade with the rest of the world and are a major cause of inflation
and economic slowdown;
(4) Experts project that world oil prices will remain very high because production is
at or near its peak while world demand for oil is increasing rapidly. This
increase in demand is due largely to economic growth in developing nations,
especially China, where oil demand grew by twenty percent (20%) in 2004 and
is expected to grow by a similar amount in 2005;
(5) The price of crude oil is the major factor driving up prices for gasoline, as well
as for oil used for home heating in addition to commercial and industrial
purposes. Natural gas for home heating and other purposes has been driven to
record-high prices as a result of supply constriction and increased demand
from the industrial sector;
(6) Technologies have long existed for producing transportation fuels from
indigenous fossil and biomass energy resources in the United States, and
research has demonstrated that coal-based alternate fuel technologies are
cost-effective when the world price of petroleum exceeds thirty-five dollars
($35) per barrel;
(7) The United States has trillions of tons of indigenous fossil energy resources
and agricultural capacity that rival total worldwide conventional oil reserves.
These domestic resources are capable of producing alternate transportation
fuels sufficient to make the United States independent of foreign petroleum
imports. Kentucky has hundreds of years of fossil energy resources, and the
Commonwealths agriculture produces substantial biomass materials for
production of premium-quality liquid transportation fuels;
(8) The development of an alternate transportation fuels industry in the United
States will create long-term reliable demand for Kentuckys energy and
agricultural resources, stabilizing both the energy industries and the agriculture
community;
(9) Coal-based alternate transportation fuel technologies are capable of producing
environmentally superior transportation fuels from near-zero-emission plants
with removal or capture of virtually all pollutants, including sulfur dioxide,
nitrous oxides, mercury, and carbon dioxide, and from biomass-based
(10)
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technologies that are very environmentally positive. The United States can set
an example for the world by implementing these technologies, and Kentucky is
poised to lead the way;
Coal-based technologies in the United States are capable of producing
pipeline-quality natural gas and industrial-quality natural gas at prices which
are below current annual market prices for natural gas;
Kentuckys universities have for several decades been among the leading
entities in the United States doing research on transportation fuels from coal
and oil shale. The Kentucky Department of Agriculture has provided support
relating to development of transportation fuels from Kentucky agricultural
materials;
Although developing an alternate fuels industry capable of reducing Americas
dependence on foreign sources of petroleum requires the large-scale financial
and technical resources of the federal government and private industry, only
government and industry in the states can ensure the most efficient and
productive on-site joining of technologies, energy resources, and industrial and
transportation infrastructure;
The economic, national security, and environmental advantages of establishing
thriving domestic alternative liquid fuels and synthetic natural gas industries
vastly outweigh the development costs. In contrast, doing little or nothing
subjects America to continued and repeated energy supply disruptions and to
potentially severe economic consequences;
Embarking on a national mission to achieve energy security and move toward
liquid and synthetic fuels independence will not only reduce risk and lower oil
prices, natural gas prices, and oil price volatility, it will also facilitate an
industrial rebirth, create jobs, foster new technology, and enhance economic
growth; and
Kentucky, through its universities, has done the research and testing of these
environmentally responsible alternative liquid fuel technologies. Kentucky has
the natural resources to be the leader in achieving energy security and
independence for the United States.
Effective:July 12, 2006
History: Created 2006 Ky. Acts ch. 184, sec. 1, effective July 12, 2006.
Legislative Research Commission Note (7/12/2006). 2006 Ky. Acts ch. 184, sec.
6 provides that KRS 152.710 to 152.725 and KRS 45A.615 shall be known as
the Kentucky Energy Security National Leadership Act.
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