On January 18, the DRIVE Act (Dependence Reduction Through Innovation in Vehicles and Energy), the expanded, improved version of the Vehicle and Fuel Choices for American Security Act developed by Set America Free and others that got so much attention last year, was introduced in the Senate.

It's S.339, sponsored by 25 Senators, led by Bayh, Brownback and Coleman We posted details, the initial Senate sponsor list and details about the bill last week at http://www.calcars.org/­calcars-news/­660.html

On January 24, the bill was introduced in the House, as H.R.670, with principal sponsors Eliot Engel and Jack Kingston, again showing the broad support across the ideological spectrums of the Democratic and Republican parties.

Below is the list of the 55 original co-sponsors. See if your representative is on the list.

You can keep track of this at "Thomas," the service at the Library of Congress (named after Jefferson), where you can check the status of legislation. Here's how: At http://thomas.loc.gov/­bss/­110search.html Search by bill number in the 110th Congress. It works if you do variants with different spacing and with/without the periods, but the official bill numbers are H.R.670 and S.339. A few days after introduction, the House bill is up to 67 co-sponsors. Status: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Science and Technology, Ways and Means, Transportation and Infrastructure, and Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

SPONSORS
Engel, Eliot (NY)
Kingston, Jack (GA)

CO-SPONSORS
Ackerman, Gary L. (NY) Andrews, Robert E. (NJ) Arcuri, Michael A. (NY) Bartlett, Roscoe G. (MD) Berkley, Shelley (NV) Berman, Howard L. (CA) Bishop, Sanford D., Jr. (GA) Bishop, Timothy H. (NY) Bono, Mary (CA) Burton, Dan (IN) Campbell, John (CA) Cleaver, Emanuel (MO) Cohen, Steve (TN) Davis, Lincoln (TN) DeFazio, Peter A. (OR) Eshoo, Anna G. (CA) Everett, Terry (AL) Gerlach, Jim (PA) Giffords, Gabrielle (AZ) Gilchrest, Wayne T. (MD) Gillibrand, Kirsten E. (NY) Gingrey, Phil (GA) Hall, John J. (NY) Harman, Jane (CA) Hinchey, Maurice D. (NY) Honda, Michael M. (CA) Inglis, Bob (SC) Inslee, Jay (WA) Israel, Steve (NY) Kind, Ron (WI) Klein, Ron (FL) Kuhl, John R. "Randy", Jr. (NY) Lantos, Tom (CA) Linder, John (GA) Lipinski, Daniel (IL) LoBiondo, Frank A. (NJ) Lowey, Nita M. (NY) Matsui, Doris O. (CA) McCollum, Betty (MN) McCotter, Thaddeus G. (MI) McNulty, Michael R. (NY) Moore, Dennis (KS) Moran, James P. (VA) Napolitano, Grace F. (CA) Platts, Todd Russell (PA) Price, David E. (NC) Price, Tom (GA) Renzi, Rick (AZ) Rogers, Mike D. (AL) Ross, Mike (AR) Rothman, Steven R. (NJ) Ruppersberger, C. A. Dutch (MD) Saxton, Jim (NJ) Schakowsky, Janice D. (IL) Schiff, Adam B. (CA) Schwartz, Allyson Y. (PA) Scott, David (GA) Sherman, Brad (CA) Souder, Mark E. (IN) Terry, Lee (NE) Towns, Edolphus (NY) Udall, Mark (CO) Weiner, Anthony D. (NY) Westmoreland, Lynn A. (GA) Wexler, Robert (FL) Wynn, Albert Russell (MD)