Gov. Bev Perdue told the first meeting of the Energy Policy Council on Wednesday that she wanted her advisors to come up with a plan make the state more energy efficient and environmentally friendly by April in time for the short session of the legislature.

The governor said she wanted the council to look at what taxes should be changed, whether utility regulations should be altered and whether the work force is being properly trained for new green jobs, Rob Christensen reports.

"I am urging you all to make some decisions very quickly on how we can push North Carolina into a national leadership position in green around the green economy," Perdue told a meeting held on the Centennial Campus at N.C. State University.

The council is headed by Tim Toben of Chapel Hill, developer of Greenbridge Development and includes executives from Duke Energy, Piedmont Natural Gas, the Environmental Defense Fund, a biofuels company, a solar fuels company, legislators and others.

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole has accepted more than a quarter of a miillion dollars from oil and gas companies and their employees.

According to the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics, the Salisbury Republican has received $266,456 from people associated with the oil and gas industry since 2002. Of that, $102,827 — or roughly 39 percent — came in the past two years.

Dole received much more from other industries, however.

Over her career, she's received $2.6 million from retirees, $903,810 from lawyers, $853,063 from people in real estate and $747,736 from employees of investment firms. Donations from the oil and gas sector were 14th among industries who gave to Dole.

Donors include Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens, who gave $1,000 in April; and American Petroleum Institute president Red Cavaney, who gave $4,100 in 2007.

In addition, Dole has received $35,000 from oil and gas companies' political action committees since 2002, including $10,000 from Piedmont Natural Gas, $6,000 from ExxonMobil and $5,000 from Valero Energy.

Of that money, $30,500 came in the past two years.

After the jump, the contributions.

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