Congressman Devin Nunes (R-CA) has introduced new legislation that would open up a portion of the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and gas drilling and would use the leasing revenue and the federal share of royalties from the ANWR production — estimated at $40 billion — to fund a number of renewable energy programs.

“Congress has a responsibility to deal with our nation’s energy demands in a bi-partisan manner that benefits all Americans,” Nunes said in a statement. “As such, we have proposed the largest investment in alternative energies in the history of the United States, and most importantly, it can all be done at no expense to the taxpayer. By opening up ANWR to oil exploration, and placing the lease and royalty revenues generated into a trust fund, the next generation of home-grown energy would be incubated.”

The bill stipulates that all leasing and royalty funds placed in an American-Made Energy Trust Fund could be used only for the development of new home-grown renewable energy technologies. The funds would be used specifically for the following renewable programs:

“With rising turmoil in the Middle East and other oil producing nations, we can no longer outsource our energy stability to countries that put our national security at risk,” Nunes said. “Funding future home-grown energy innovations is what has to be done to produce lower prices at the pump and increase security in America.”

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