(Washington, DC)  --  Sitting behind a stack of cards and letters signed by Missouri citizens, Senator Kit Bond explained why tens of thousands of Missourians are rejecting cap-and-trade legislation during a U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing on the Boxer-Kerry bill.

   Senator Bond said the citizens of Missouri want to live with reasonable and responsible regulations, not mandates.

   He stressed that cap-and-trade bills like Waxman-Markey and Boxer-Kerry will raise Missouri electric bills up to 26-percent by 2012.

   He discussed how many Missourians care about the environment, but do not want to eliminate jobs and raise energy taxes in an effort to fight global warming.