Boccieri speaks at gas station, calls for energy innovation in Ohio

State Sen. John Boccieri: speaking with motorist

WEST CANTON -- State Sen. John Boccieri (D-New Middletown) spoke at a Sunoco station Tuesday morning to discuss the matter of high gas prices and its effect on the economy. Boccieri called for the development of alternative sources of energy and energy innovation in Ohio.

Boccieri was joined by Canton Mayor William Healy (D-Canton) and is running against State Sen. Kirk Schuring (R-Canton) to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula (R-Navarre).

Boccieri called for a change in Congress, saying, with regard to the "skyrocketing gas prices," that "enough is enough."

"We need a Congressman who's going to stand up and say no to big oil," he said. "That it's time to put America first. [A congressman] who will stand up and say no to hedge fund managers, who are speculating and driving the price of a barrel of crude oil to new record levels at $143 dollars just yesterday."

Boccieri said his opponent would talk about drilling, but "we can't drill our way out of this dilemma."

"In fact, the top oil executives of the country are saying that if we start drilling in ANWAR, if we started drilling today, we wouldn't receive a drop of oil from there for nearly 15 to 20 years," he said. "We need relief now. And we need American policies that put Americans first."

Boccieri said families  in the 16th Congressional District were spending an average of $4,000 annually to fill up their gas tanks.

"At the same time, they've witnessed double-digit unemployment, double-digit inflation in terms of health care costs, increases in costs at the grocery store and on down the line, but we haven't seen a gross in wages. In fact, we've seen more and more people become unemployed."

Boccieri: pumping gas for Canton Mayor William Healy

Boccieri said voters need to send a congressman to Washington who will not hike the gas prices, "like my opponent has done," he said.

"It's cost average Americans in Ohio, and average Ohioans nearly half a billion dollars in new gas taxes, and nearly $250 million dollars every year annually from this point forward. And it's time that we stand up and fight for small businesses, like this Sunoco station here, that are operating on the margin just to keep this place open."

Boccieri said there needs to be investment in alternative sources of energy.

"Just in the 16th district here, we have the No. 1 agriculture-producing county in Ohio, which is Wayne County. Could you imagine growing our own fuel in this state, and then refining it in a great city like Canton here?"

Boccieri said a bill he proposed in the state legislature would give tax incentives and provide resources available for companies, so they could build refineries on abandoned industrial properties.

"And we could grow our own fuel here in the state, refine it here in the state and lessen our dependence on foreign sources of oil," he said. "We need to focus not on middle-east oil, but on mid-west innovation. And we have some great success stories right here in the 16th district, with the fuel-cell technology being developed at Stark State Community College, the millions of dollars in grant money that the state of Ohio has been giving them to advance the technology. Those are the types of innovation that will propel our economy."

Boccieri said the difference between him and Schuring was that Schuring voted for an increase in Ohio's gas tax, while Boccieri voted against it.

"My opponent has hiked the gas tax in the state of Ohio, and it cost everyone in this district and around the state a half a billion dollars in new gas taxes and nearly a quarter of a billion dollars every year in annual taxes at the pump."

Boccieri said he supported new energy and new investment in a project that's going to advance alternative forms of energy.

"I happen to believe it shouldn't be a Manhattan Project, which ended in a nuclear bomb," he said. "It needs to be an Apollo project, which set its sights at new innovation for America with exploration, and that's the type of investment we need from our Congress and our national leaders."

Boccieri mentioned clean coal and bio-diesel as possibilities.

The event had some Canton residents in attendance who were holding signs critical of Boccieri. Chris Cugini, who was holding one of the signs, said the group was not affiliated with the Schuring campaign.

"We are just concerned citizens about the price of oil," Cugini said. "We want to wean ourselves off of foreign oil. I know it's not something we can do right away. But it's something we can start doing now."

Fellow sign holder Chris Bucher said she was concerned that America is not self-sufficient.

"We could be self-sufficient, going after the oil that we have," she said. "And we are depending not only on foreign countries, but rogue countries. And it concerns me."

Protestors at Boccieri event