Nov 18 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Michael Coleman Albuquerque Journal, N.M.

Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., said Monday the new Democratic Congress and White House should push an aggressive energy agenda that includes more conservation and clean power production as well as a stronger commitment to curbing climate change.

Bingaman, who chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, drew more than 200 journalists, policy wonks and foreign diplomats to a speech he gave Monday at the Center for Strategic International Studies.

"We have a real opportunity in the 111th Congress to make serious progress on dealing with energy issues," said Bingaman, who as chairman of the energy panel has often been at odds with the Republican-controlled White House on issues including renewable energy funding and climate change legislation.

"President-elect Obama has made this a priority in his campaign and made a commitment to solving our energy problems," he added.

Bingaman outlined six pri- orities he will pursue in the new Congress: Deploying clean energy, boosting energy efficiency, producing more oil and gas, increased innovation, making energy markets more transparent, and protecting the environment.

He said he will encourage Congress to adopt new federal policy requiring utilities to generate a percentage of their energy from clean sources such as wind or solar.

"I think we finally have the opportunity to see such a policy adopted and implemented," Bingaman said. "A national renewable electricity standard will enhance the diversity of our domestic electricity generation and it will position the United States to regain the world technology lead in these areas."

But Bingaman, who hails from an oil- and gas-producing state, also said the United States should drill more -- at least until the transition to new, reliable power sources is well under way.

"We need to recognize that it will take time ... (and ensure) that our country has an adequate supply of traditional fuels as we go through this," he said.

In an interview after his speech, Bingaman said he would be unlikely to support renewing a moratorium on offshore drilling that Congress allowed to lapse before this month's elections. However, he said the federal government should pay for an extensive inventory of what the offshore areas contain before leasing or drilling haphazardly.

"As a general matter we need to develop more of our resources on the Outer Continental Shelf," Bingaman said.

He said areas off the coast of Florida remain off-limits under law signed by President Bush, and that should be reconsidered.

"That hasn't been a part of the debate and I think it should be,' he said.

Bingaman said the government can do much more to encourage energy conservation among drivers, homeowners and large business owners. He called the current effort "very weak."

The senator also worried that falling gasoline prices will discourage consumers from buying more fuel efficient vehicles, but he stopped short of endorsing a gasoline tax to keep fuel prices high.

"The politics of any kind of tax are problematic," he said.

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