The U.S. House of Representatives for the third time in more than a year approved new taxes on the oil industry to pay for incentives for renewable energy and efficiency.

But U.S. Rep.

Phil English, R-3rd, denounced the legislation citing concerns over the adverse impact the bill would have on prices at the pump for American consumers as well as its threat to America's energy independence.English said the Democratic-backed energy tax bill also would raise taxes on American energy production by more than $17.5 billion.The House bill targets a tax break Congress provided in 2005 to help domestic manufacturers compete with foreign companies. It would limit the amount of tax credits the largest U.S. oil companies could claim under that law.The bill also limits the tax break provided to oil companies in connection with foreign oil and gas extraction."This legislation will take away incentives that have proven to bolster domestic energy production right here at home while giving more American dollars to a hostile dictator that has threatened to sever Venezuelan energy supplies to the United States," said English, whose committee has jurisdiction over tax policy.———U.S. Sen.

Bob Casey, D-Pa., and three colleagues are urging the agriculture department to make recall information public.Casey, along with Sens.

Dick Durbin, D-Ill.,

Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and

Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, on Wednesday sent a letter to the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, asking him to immediately approve a new rule, which would improve consumer awareness in the case of recalls.Specifically, the rule would allow the government to quickly name retailers who might have sold tainted meat and poultry in the event of a voluntary recall.The letter follows the recall last week of 143 million pounds of beef products — the largest recall in US history."Too often Americans turn on the television and see another food recall, and many times those foods are already stocked in consumers' refrigerators," Casey said. "These foods can pose a serious hazard to our health, and the USDA needs to publish the rule so Americans know the foods they are feeding to their families are safe."The recent Westland Meat recall revealed that information made public by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is often incomplete and confusing to consumers, Casey said.Current USDA policy denies the right of consumers to know where recalled products were sold. "It is unacceptable to keep consumers in the dark" when recalls affect consumer safety, the senators wrote.