Posted by: David Lungren David_Lungren@epw.senate.gov

Climate Bill ‘Radioactive’ -‘More Controversial Than Health Care’ - ‘Long Road, Little Time’ - ‘McCain Assails’

Inhofe EPW News Round-Up  

Roll Call: Many Fear Boxer Drafted  Climate Bill “Radioactive” (09/30/09) - But on Tuesday — the day before Environment and Public Works Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Foreign Relations Chairman John Kerry (D-Mass.) are expected to unveil a climate change bill — moderate Democrats still appeared squishy on the issue.“I am not committed to [carbon] cap-and-trade under any circumstance,” Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) said. “It’s a difficult issue,” added Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), who hails from a manufacturing state. But moderates from Midwest and coal states have largely stayed mum on the issue. Many fear a Boxer-drafted climate change bill would seriously harm the manufacturing industry and thus be politically radioactive in a year in which moderates already face a difficult vote on health care. “The climate change debate is being driven by California and Massachusetts,” Murkowski spokesman Rob Dylan said. “People forget what life is in the middle of the country, and I think that’s what we’re trying to talk about.”

Reuters: McCain Assails Senate Democrats' Climate Bill (09/29/09) -Republican Senator John McCain, a leading voice for reducing carbon emissions, said on Tuesday he will not support the climate change bill being introduced by Senate Democrats, illustrating the lack of bipartisan support for the bill. Democratic Senators Barbara Boxer and John Kerry are expected on Wednesday to unveil their plan for cutting smokestack emissions and building vehicles that pollute less. It calls for a 20 percent cut in U.S. carbon emissions from 2005 levels by 2020 and an 83 percent reduction by 2050, according to Senate Republican aides familiar with the Democratic bill. But the legislation faces opposition from Republicans and some moderate Democrats, and competes with healthcare and financial reform on a crowded legislative agenda. Asked whether he could support the Democrats' bill as now written, McCain, the Republican's unsuccessful candidate for president last year, replied: "Of course not. Never, never, never."The Arizona senator said in a brief interview with Reuters that he recently met with Kerry on the Democratic bill, which will be introduced with some details still not filled in."There are really no nuclear provisions of any impact. You cannot reduce greenhouse gas emissions without nuclear power," he said. A senior Senate Republican aid said that as of now he knew of no Republican senators who would initially support the bill. But as more details are filled in during coming weeks, the aide said a few Republicans could join the Boxer-Kerry effort.

CQ: Senate Floor Action Unlikely Until Next Year (09/29/09) - That means a climate change bill is unlikely to reach the Senate floor until January or February at the earliest. The leading Senate opponent of climate change legislation, James M. Inhofe of Oklahoma, slammed the strategy of bringing out an incomplete bill. “My hope is that Chairman Boxer avoids repeating the process of pushing climate change legislation in the House, in which key portions of the bill were inserted at the last minute, and the American people were left guessing as to how it would impact their energy costs, their jobs, and America’s energy security,” said Inhofe, ranking Republican on the Environment panel.

Energy Daily: Dems Worry about Impacts on Economy, Manufacturing, and Employment Back Home (09/30/09) - According to a variety of sources on and off Capitol Hill, Boxer and Kerry remain 15 to 22 votes shy of the 60 they would need to overcome an almost certain filibuster by Republicans when the bill arrives at the Senate floor. Key Democratic senators who continue to withhold their support are motivated by concerns about the bill’s impact on the economy, on manufacturing and employment in their states, and for senators facing re-election in 2010, the possibility of a voter backlash against the prospect of higher energy costs just years after the nation has recovered from a damaging economic recession.

Reuters: Long Road, Little Time for U.S. Climate Bill (09/29/09) -  When Democrats in the U.S. Senate unveil their version of climate change legislation on Wednesday, they face great difficulties: an already crowded 2009 agenda, doubts from some members of their own political party and opposition from most or all Republicans. At the same time, environmental experts on Capitol Hill and beyond are warning that key details will be left out of the bill being introduced. For example, the way in which carbon pollution permits will be shared among various industries likely will have to be worked out by senators in coming weeks. "The most important thing that can happen tomorrow is that people view this as a starting point for negotiations" on a bill senators "can tailor and ultimately vote for," said Tony Kreindler of the Environmental Defense Fund. Assuming a bill passes committee in coming weeks, it is not clear whether the full Senate will have time to debate and pass it before global climate change talks in Copenhagen in December, as healthcare and U.S. financial system reforms are seen as being first in line on the Senate's schedule. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer had originally set a late July deadline for introducing legislation mandating reductions in industry emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases blamed for global warming. The idea is to build on the goals of the 12-year-old Kyoto Protocol, an international deal the United States never fully embraced, that called on industrialized nations to reduce their collective greenhouse gas emissions by 5.2 percent from 1990 levels.

AP: Senate Climate Bill Tougher than House Version (09/29/09) - Sen. James Inhofe of Oklahoma, the committee's ranking Republican and a sharp critic of climate legislation, said he expects that Democrats will be able to push the bill through committee. But he urged Boxer to have a "fair, open and transparent process" and not add key parts of the bill "at the last minute" as did House Democrats. As the draft began to circulate Wednesday among environmental organizations, it became clear the legislation is viewed by both supporters and opponents as largely a beginning for what is expected to be intense and difficult discussions and debate among senators in the coming months over climate legislation. "It's a starting point for negotiations," said Anthony Kreindler, a spokesman for the Environmental Defense Fund, a leading proponent of cap-and-trade measures to deal with climate… The Senate draft does not spell out how emission allowances will be distributed, leaving one of the most contentious issues to further negotiations. The House would provide for free 85 percent of emission allowances to various industries, especially electric utilities to help reduce the cost to consumers.

Politico: “Bill Dodges Some of the Most Contentious Issues” (09/30/09) - “It’s all really fluid,” said Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), who planned to meet with a group of coal state senators late Tuesday to discuss how to amend the legislation. The tougher targets illustrate the tightrope Boxer, the chairwoman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, must walk. While coal and farm state Democrats fear the legislation could result in higher energy costs, liberal environmental groups are pushing for tougher targets, tighter controls on agriculture programs and less funding for coal and other fossil-fuel-intensive energies. The 20 percent target exceeds the 17 percent goal passed by the House in late June and the 14 percent proposed by the Obama administration last spring. The bill dodges some of the most contentious issues, like how the government will distribute the billions of dollars’ worth of emissions allowances that would be created by a cap-and-trade system. And the legislation avoids the specifics on how to help protect manufacturers from foreign competition.

Congress Daily: Dem: "I am not committed to cap and trade at this point under any circumstances," (09/30/09) - A couple of Democrats suggested they would oppose a bill regardless of that midterm target. "I am not committed to cap and trade at this point under any circumstances," Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said. Sen. Ben Nelson, D-N.D., added: "The 'trade' piece knocks it out for me." The race to 60 votes in the Senate will depend in large part on language that will not be included in an 800-page plus cap-and-trade bill that Kerry and Boxer will unveil today. This includes how the bill will allocate emission credits to businesses either for free or through an auction -- which Boxer's panel and the Finance Committee have jurisdiction over.

E&E News: Boxer-Kerry Bill Draws “Mixed Reviews” By Senators (09/30/09) - The decision by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) to seek steeper greenhouse gas emissions cuts than their House counterparts drew mixed reviews from senators yesterday, underscoring the challenges the pair will face after unveiling their climate bill today. The lawmakers briefed several senators yesterday evening as staff put the final touches on the cap-and-trade bill for this morning's official unveiling. The measure was circulated in draft form yesterday. But today's planned roll-out is just the beginning of the Senate climate effort. The bill will have placeholder titles on controversial issues like carbon markets oversight and international trade, a senior aide to Boxer said, because other committees have jurisdiction.

Washington Times: Senate Climate Bill Stricter on Emissions (09/29/09) - Senior Senate Democrats plan to unveil new climate-change legislation Wednesday that will call for steeper cuts in carbon dioxide emissions than a bill that passed the House this summer, but the measure is likely to be held up until President Obama's top priority, health care reform, is completed…Mr. Inhofe, an opponent of the cap-and-trade plan, said Tuesday that the bill will almost certainly pass Mrs. Boxer's committee, which is dominated by Democrats who back the approach. But he said Democrats cannot yet muster the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster threat on the Senate floor without deals that address the concerns of individual senators. He said Mrs. Boxer is withholding the free allowance plan to allow her to negotiate with utilities, refiners, energy-intensive industries and environmental groups as the bill proceeds. "They're trying to pick off the opposition one at a time," Mr. Inhofe said.

WSJ:  Senate to Unveil Climate-Bill Blueprint Wednesday (09/29/09) - Top Senate Democrats Wednesday plan to unveil a draft climate bill that would call for somewhat-faster reductions in U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions than would be required under a House bill. But the proposal is expected to defer tough decisions on many other major issues, underscoring the challenges lawmakers face in seeking a consensus on the issue…The Senate proposal isn't expected to specify how the government would allocate billions of dollars worth of the permits. By remaining silent on that and other issues, the proposal effectively postpones for weeks many of the toughest questions associated with climate legislation, as senators wade deeper into the debate over health-care legislation. Administration officials have said they would like to get a climate bill signed into law before an international summit on climate change in December. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) has said any chamber vote may wait until next year.

Inside EPA: Draft Senate Climate Bill Seeks Stricter Emissions Target Than House (09/30/09) - In the face of such uncertainty, Republicans on the environment committee are raising concerns that leaving out key provisions may make it difficult to assess the bill's costs. “We understand that your bill, as currently drafted, is incomplete in several important respects -- most notably, it lacks a formula to determine the allocation of emission allowances. Leaving out these and other key provisions makes it impossible to get an objective estimate of the economic impacts of your bill on consumers, especially those in energy-intensive regions that rely on coal for electricity and manufacturing for jobs,” the GOP senators said in a Sept. 29 letter to Boxer.

BNA: Democrats and Republicans Alike Express Concerns About Higher Energy Costs (09/30/09) The 801-page bill, written over the last several months with Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), will serve as the lead legislative vehicle in the Senate and is expected to clear the Environment and Public Works Committee, which Boxer chairs, with little difficulty in October. Several other committees have claimed jurisdiction over the bill, however, and Democrats and Republicans alike have expressed concern that the bill's emissions trading approach could raise energy costs and provide no guarantees that carbon prices could be held in check. The Senate cap-and-trade bill, like the House bill, would require companies to hold allowances, or permits, for each ton of greenhouse gases they emit. Unlike the House bill (H.R. 2454), Boxer's bill contains no provisions on distribution of emissions allowances among various industries and programs. Instead the bill has placeholder language that leaves those formulas up to future negotiations.

Iowa Independent: Grassley: ‘Cap and Trade’ Will be More Controversial than Health Care (09/29/09) - Of the three big issues before Congress this year — health care, cap-and-trade and banking regulation reform — U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley said that cap-and-trade will be the most controversial.“It just seems to me that the push for cap-and-trade has slowed down very dramatically since the [U.S.] House passed it on the Friday before the July 4th break,” Iowa Republican Grassley said, after noting that he didn’t believe cap-and-trade legislation would make it to the U.S. Senate floor this year. “It has really surfaced as being something that people understand and they don’t like, and that point of view is getting through to Congress.”Members of the House passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, commonly referred to as cap-and-trade legislation or the Waxman-Markey bill, in June. The legislation proposes limits on carbon dioxide emissions through the buying and selling of carbon credits. Emitters of carbon dioxide above the proposed limits would buy carbon credits from companies that are under the proposed limit, and the credits would be publicly traded by commodity brokers.

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