SENATE PUSHING CLIMATE BILL THROUGH PANEL; DITCH "CAP & TRADE" NAME
By
NWV News writer Jim Kouri
Posted 1:00 AM Eastern
November 8, 2009
© 2009 NewsWithViews.com
In spite of the growing opposition by the American people, US Senate Democrats rammed an unprecedented climate bill (S. 1733) through a Senate committee on Thursday.
California Senator
Barbara Boxer, who chairs the powerful Senate
Environment and Public Works Committee, had postponed the bill's
vote for several days due to her need to address Republican members'
protests. The major disagreement is the cost of the bill and its impact
on the US economy.
However, Senator Boxer decided to take advantage of the Fort Hood incident
and the continuing health care debate to quietly pass the bill, according
to one Washington insider. It also helped her to have the name of the
bill changed from "Cap-and-Trade," since that term has caused
widespread criticism by a majority of Americans.
"Senator Boxer used the tragic {shootings at Fort Hood] to cloak
the partisan passage of a bill certain to hurt a majority of American
citizens," said political strategist Mike Baker.
"Boxer wields a lot of power in the Senate and she's known as an
abrasive, hard-nosed infighter," he added.
The bill passed through Boxer's committee with an 11-1 vote. The Democrats
voted without any of the seven Republican Senators attending the session.
The GOP Senators were angry over many aspects of the bill including
a provision that would set mandatory limits on heat-trapping gases.
Also the
bill will increase gasoline prices.
Boxer said during a press conference that the Republican demand for more analysis was "duplicative and waste of taxpayer dollars."
Boxer introduced the bill along with Massachusetts Senator John Kerry last September. Only one of the Democrat Senators voted against the legislation. Senator Max Baucus of Montana voted against the bill claiming that he has serious concerns about the bill. He gave as an example the bill's call for a 20 percent reduction in greenhouse gases by 2020.
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In order to get
the legislation out of committee and onto the Senate floor without the
Republicans present will prevent the Democrats from tinkering or fine
tuning the bill's provisions.
The Senate's Kerry-Boxer climate bill is similar to the Waxman-Markey
bill that passed the House last June.
While the Senate
bill stipulates CO2 emissions reduction of 20 by 2020, The House of
Representatives' bill mandates for a 17 percent reduction..
The Senate bill has a price cap (hence the term "cap-and-trade")
containing a provision to increase efforts to prevent the price for
carbon permits dropping below $11/ton or soaring above $28/ton. Business
organization and economists warns that this will limit price volatility,
which can make it trickier for companies to make investment decisions.
Republicans
in the House opposed the arbitrary method in which some industries
would get free pollution allowances under the cap-and-trade system.
"This entire
legislative disaster will increase the cost for electricity, gasoline,
coal, oil, etc.," warns Baker.
"It is also a perfect example of a big-government power grab on
top of the planned government takeover of health care, water, farms,
and financial institutions. These politicians claim they do what they
do on behalf of the American people, but it's the American people who
will suffer," said Baker.
An Environmental Protection Agency study released by Senator Boxer claims
that while there are differences between the Senate and House bills,
they are so small that the economic costs "would be similar"
in the case of either bill. It said the cost would add between $80 to
$111 a year to households energy bills as a result of higher prices.
Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the household
cost of the bill would be $175 a year per household.
However, some industry-cited studies have put the cost much higher,
some
claiming possible added costs of as much as $3,000 per year per household.
President Barack Obama and administration officials are on the record as backing the Senate bill especially its provision to to slash greenhouse gas emissions and boost investment in renewable energy.
Obama's Energy
Secretary, Steven Chu, stated in his testimony before Senator Boxer's
committee that a cap on carbon emissions will help drive investment
decisions toward clean energy technologies.
"A cap on carbon will give the energy industry the long-term direction
and the certainty it needs to make appropriate technology and capital
investment decisions," Chu said in a press statement.
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But opponents of this legislation have deep reservations about both the Senate and House bills. They have said -- and continue to say -- that caps on emissions will amount to a tax on struggling industries and the costs to corporations will be passed on to consumers through higher prices.
Selected Earlier Stories
1
- Sarah Foster: Climate
Bill Spells 'Skyrocketing' Energy Rates, Unemployment, Less Freedom.
July 14, 2009
2 - Marc Morano: Moonwalkers
Defy Al Gore's Claim. July 11, 2009
3 - Devvy Kidd: Cap-and-Trade
Rape Passed ? What Must be Done Next. June 29, 2009
4 - William Hunt: Control
and Loss of Freedom ? Ultimate Goal of the Global Warming Lobby.
June 1, 2009
5 - Tom DeWeese: What
If There is No Man-Made Global Warming? Mar. 2, 2009
6 - Devvy Kidd: Solution
to Global Warming and Disappearing Polar Bears. June 5, 2008
7 - Michael Coffman: Scientists
Disclaim Role of CO2 in Global Warming. Mar. 8, 2008
8 - Michael Coffman: Global
Warming or Global Governance? Aug. 13, 2007
9 - William Hunt: What
Environmentalists Don't Want You to Know. Mar. 14, 2007
10 - William Hunt: The
Nonsense of Global Warming. Jan. 22, 2007
More Reading / Resources
1
- Sen. John Kerry: S.
1733: Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act of 2009
2 - Rep. Henry Waxman: H.R.
2454 and H.R.
2998: American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009
3 - Heritage Foundation: Cap-and-Trade/Global
Warming Bill Page
4 - Marc Morano’s website: ClimateDepot.com.
