Representative Sutton Speaks in Support of the Advanced Vehicle Technology Act

I thank the Chairman for yielding the time and thank him for his strong leadership on this issue and so many initiatives that are moving our country forward. And I'd like to commend my friend, Congressman Gary Peters for his work on this bill.

The Advanced Vehicle Technology Act provides this congress with a great opportunity to help create green automotive jobs for American workers. Currently, almost all of the major components for advanced technologies vehicles sold in the United States are imported.

That needs to change.

We must ensure that our workers are assembling the vehicles of tomorrow and producing the components and next generation technologies right here at home.

And the Advanced Vehicle Technology Act invests in a diverse and comprehensive range of technologies and programs that will improve fuel efficiency and reduce harmful emissions. In my district, a startup company has been working on a process to convert into electricity to power the very same vehicle wastes.

They could partner with the Department of Energy and other industry partners to further develop and commercialize this energy producing and saving technology. I'm pleased that this bill has the research, development, commercialization of light-weight materials. Mr. Speaker, Akron, Ohio is the polymer capital of the world. There is a strong support of polymers and last particulars for -- and plastics across the country.

Our workers in the domestic steel industry can build good steel while requiring less mass, increasing fuel economy. And recently, with the overwhelming success of the cars program, Americans demonstrated their desire to trade in their less efficient clunker for a more fuel-efficient vehicle. And thanks to the cars program, nearly 700,000 clunkers were taken off the road and replaced with vehicles that had an average 58% increased fuel economy.

And the cars program brought thousands of workers back to work making autos and parts for more fuel-efficient vehicles.

With this bill before us, we will take another step to help our environment and grow jobs. And that's why this bill has earned the support of the UAW as well as Ford, GM, Chrysler and other industry and business groups. Mr. speaker, I'm also proud that we worked on an amendment that was added to this bill, working with Representative Chellie Pingree, and the Chairman, Mr. Gordon, that is also supported by the UAW, requiring a report that will disclose where the successful technologies have been achieved, and if they are, where the technologies are going to be manufactured because we want those technologies to be manufactured here.

They are going to be implemented with tax dollars from this country, and we want them to be manufactured right here in the United States. And with that, I yield back, and I commend the gentlemen for their great work.