ADVANCED ENERGY I I CHNOLOt.II s 913 



were invited to come down and take a spin. And to make everything 

 more attractive, photographers were present to insure that every Con- 

 gressman who manned the controls would have a glossy print for 

 publication in his local newspapers and in his constituent newsletter 

 as well. It was a public relations triumph for the electric vehicle bill. 



SNAKES UNDER THE ROCKS 



ERDA witnesses tried desperately to justify their opposition to 

 the bill. Dr. John Brogan of ERDA's Division of Transportation 

 morosely declared: 



We certainly don't want to find some snakes under the rocks ten years from now 

 on something that was overlooked. 



Hechler interjected: 



Since Dr. Brogan is concerned about the snakes under the rocks, I suggest that 

 we call the first electric car "The Mongoose." 



Widespread editorial and trade magazine support, supplemented 

 by nationwide constituent interest, helped propel the bill along 

 toward early enactment. The full committee unanimously approved a 

 version which incorporated Ottinger's suggestions that hybrid electric- 

 gasoline vehicles be included. Teague brought the bill to the floor 

 on September 5, 1975. McCormack explained to the House the 

 philosophy back of the committee's action: 



As we on the Science and Technology Committee have analyzed the energy 

 crisis and tried to provide solutions, we have picked pressure points where a small 

 change in technology that is socially, economically and environmentally attractive 

 can make a big difference either in increasing our energy resource base or reducing 

 energy consumption.* * * 



Switching to electric cars is such a program, particularly for second cars for 

 urban commuting, and it has the advantage that Americans replace 10 percent of 

 their cars each year anyway and that 40 percent of our cars are second cars. 



FEDERAL USE OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES 



The bill provided for introduction of electric vehicles into the 

 vehicle fleets of the Postal Service, GSA, Department of Defense and 

 other Federal agencies, as well as making them available for lease- 

 purchase to industry and private individuals. A loan guarantee pro- 

 gram and small business provisions were included to protect manufac- 

 turers and encourage smaller firms. 



In response to questions as to why private enterprise didn't 

 undertake the mission McCormack was assigning to ERDA, he 

 answered : 



We have a situation in America today where industry is waiting for a market 

 and the consumer is waiting for an industry. 



