The views expressed by contributors are their own and not the view of The Hill Opinion>Congress Blog>Politics Dems Say No to Affordable Energy, Yes to New Taxes (Rep. John Carter) by Texas GOP Rep. John Carter 12/07/07 12:51 PM ET Yesterday, the Democratic Congress passed a so called “energy bill on America’s domestic energy producers, costs that are sure to be felt by American consumers. The American people understand that this bill is bad for business and bad for American families. This bill also includes a mandate requiring states to meet a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), which requires all states to produce 15 percent of their electricity from renewable resources. For citizens of Texas, this means that consumers will pay an additional $700 million in energy costs from 2010 to 2030 because, like many other southern states, Texas lacks the resources to meet this mandate. American families are feeling the strain of college tuition, health care, and a declining housing market on top of soaring gas prices. The last thing they need this holiday season is another payment to big government. It is often said that “talk is cheap.