Congress Begins Debate Over Clean Energy Bill

 On May 18, 2009, Congress began marking up the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009.  The legislation, offered by Congressmen Henry A. Waxman and Edward J. Markey, was over six hundred pages long at its unveiling.  While before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, hundreds of amendments to the bill are expected to be offered as Congress debates the far-reaching legislation. 

The bill would establish an economy-wide cap and trade program that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by three percent by 2012, twenty percent by 2020, forty-two percent by 2030 and eighty-three percent by 2050.  Emission caps for various industries would be established in phases.  For example, emissions from electricity generation and liquid fuel refiners would be capped in 2012, with local natural gas distribution companies being capped in 2016.  Regulated emission sources would be required to obtain allowances for their greenhouse gas emissions.  Emission reductions would be achieved by limiting the number of available allowances. 

The bill proposes that fifteen percent of allowances be distributed through a federal auction, with the remainder of the allowances being granted to States or various program recipients that would then sell the allowances to support specific environmental programs, for example fostering clean energy technologies, climate change adaptation and prevention of deforestation. 

In addition to cap and trade, the legislation addresses renewable sources of energy, carbon capture and sequestration technologies, low-carbon fuels, electric vehicles, electricity transmission, improving energy efficiency across all sectors of the economy, and transitioning U.S. consumers and industry toward a clean energy economy. 

To view the draft legislation, click here.