
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, March 29, 1991                   TAG: 9103290301
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B2   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: Southwest bureau
DATELINE: BRISTOL                                LENGTH: Short

BOUCHER BILL URGES COAL USE, ELECTRIC CARS

Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, said Thursday he is introducing legislation to help make coal the centerpiece of the nation's energy independence effort, starting with a push for more electric cars.

Boucher said he would use his membership on the House Energy and Commerce Committee - which will draft legislation to promote energy security - to seek a bigger role for coal.

"Coal is America's most abundant energy resource, and its greater use can help us attain a satisfactory level of national energy self-sufficiency," he said.

Noting that electric utilities are the biggest market for U.S. coal and that transportation is the biggest oil consumer, he said, "Creation of a viable market for electric cars will simultaneously boost coal production and lessen the nation's dependence on foreign oil."

His legislation would require owners of fleets of 20 or more vehicles to substitute electric ones for at least 10 percent of their new-vehicle purchases. It would take effect once the technology has reached the point where electric vehicles are comparable to conventionally fueled ones in price, acceleration and range.

He also is proposing a research and development program to create a clean coal-water slurry to fire diesel railroad locomotives.

Boucher's legislation will be considered by the Energy and Commerce Committee.

by CNB