E-Newsletter

A Southwest Virginia Tradition

Last week, I had the honor of meeting Frank Newsome, an incredible vocalist from Southwest Virginia.  Mr. Newsome was in Washington to receive the 2011 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) National Heritage Fellowship Award, the nation’s highest honor for folk and traditional arts.  He is an Old Regular Baptist singer, one of the oldest musical traditions of Virginia, and Mr. Newsome is the first person to be honored with the award for this genre of music. In the Old Regular Baptist style, the preacher sings out a line of a hymn without musical accompaniment, and the congregation then repeats the same line.  Through this form of music, Mr. Newsome is honoring the culture and heritage of the coal mining communities. I have had the opportunity to listen to Mr. Newsome’s recordings. His singing is authentic and moving.

Born in 1942, Mr. Newsome was one of 22 children. After working in the coal mines for more than 17 years, Mr. Newsome left the mines and used his vocal gift to lead his congregation in hymns and services.  He currently lives in Haysi and preaches at the Little David Old Regular Baptist Church in Buchanan County. Congratulations to Mr. Newsome on receiving this distinguished award.

EPA Regulatory Relief Act Approved by House Energy and Commerce Committee

Last Wednesday, my legislation, the EPA Regulatory Relief Act of 2011 (H.R. 2250) (Boiler MACT bill), received bipartisan approval from the House Energy and Commerce Committee by a vote of 36 to 14. The EPA Regulatory Relief Act would help keep many jobs in the manufacturing sector from leaving the country, particularly in the 9th District of Virginia.  The bill would help protect jobs by giving the EPA sufficient time to craft truly achievable rules for industrial boilers.  It would also give facilities ample time to comply with new, reasonable rules.  As my bill heads to the House floor for consideration, I look forward to continuing the fight to roll back burdensome regulations that are putting the squeeze on precious American jobs.

Pipeline Safety Bill Passes Unanimously

Believe it or not, Democrats and Republicans can work together!  In an example of all-too-rare bipartisanship, the House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously passed the Pipeline Infrastructure and Community Protection Act (H.R. 2937) last week. This bill would make critical improvements to pipeline safety laws in order to enhance both public safety and environmental protection. Democrats and Republicans found common solutions that will prevent future pipeline safety failures.

North American pipelines are critical for transporting valuable energy resources throughout our nation. More pipelines in America mean more oil and natural gas flowing through our nation.  It means more refining jobs on the path to reaching consumers. There are North American energy resources available to our nation if the Administration and my colleagues in the Senate are willing to utilize them. By opening access and developing infrastructure, like the Keystone XL Pipeline, which stretches from Canada to Houston, Texas we can create more American jobs while lowering our dependency on OPEC and other oil producing countries.

In July, the House approved the North American-Made Energy Security Act (H.R. 1938) to speed up the permitting process for approval of the Keystone XL Pipeline.  Unfortunately, the Senate has yet to take action on this job-creating bill. Approval of this pipeline would allow the U.S. to bring in hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil each day in a reliable manner from a trusted ally.  I encourage my colleagues in the Senate to waste no more time in getting this bill to the President’s desk for his signature.

As always, if you have concerns or comments or wish to inquire about legislative issues, feel free to contact my offices. You can call my Abingdon office at 276-525-1405 or my Christiansburg office at 540-381-5671. To reach my office via email, please visit my website at www.morgangriffith.house.gov.