Monday, June 02, 2008

Global Warming Cap-&-Trade Bill On Senate Floor This Week

Update June 6: Cloture (antifilibuster) vote failed 48 to 36 so new legislation will not be considered until 2009.

America's Climate Security Act of 2007 (S. 2191) [Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act] introduced October 18, 2007

AAEA Supports S.3036
(we do not support auction)

{reintroduced May 20, 2008 with Barbara Boxer as sponsor: Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act of 2008 (S. 3036)}

is being debated on the Senate Floor this week and includes the following provisions:

America's Climate Security Act of 2007 - Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish: (1) a greenhouse gas (GHG) registry; and (2) a GHG emission allowance transfer system for covered facilities, including specified facilities within the electric power and industrial sectors and facilities that produce or entities that import petroleum- or coal- based transportation fuel or chemicals. Sets forth emission allowances for 2012-2050, with a declining cap on GHGs.

Provides for selling, exchanging, transferring, submitting, retiring, or borrowing emission allowances. Establishes: (1) a domestic offset program to sequester GHGs in agriculture and forests; and (2) the Bonus Allowance Account.

Establishes the Carbon Market Efficiency Board, which shall observe and report on the national GHG emission market and provide cost relief measures if it determines that the market poses significant harm to the U.S. economy.

Provides for the distribution of emission allowances, including initially giving allowances to: (1) specified owners and operators of covered facilities; (2) states; (3) load-serving entities that deliver electricity to retail consumers; (4) the Secretary of Agriculture to reduce GHG emissions in the agriculture and forestry sectors; (5) international forest protection activities; and (6) the Emission Allowance Account for covered facilities in the electric power and industrial sectors.

Establishes in the Treasury and provides for allocations from: (1) the Energy Assistance Fund; (2) the Climate Change Worker Training Fund; (3) the Adaptation Fund; and (4) the Climate Change and National Security Fund.

Establishes the Climate Change Credit Corporation to auction emission allowances. Provides for the use of auction proceeds, including for a zero- or low-carbon energy technologies program, an advanced coal and sequestration technologies program, incentives for production of fuel from cellulosic biomass, and an advanced technology vehicles manufacturing incentive program.

Amends the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to set forth provisions concerning appliance energy efficiency requirements and state building energy efficiency code updates.

Requires the President to establish an interagency group to determine whether foreign countries have addressed GHGs.

Directs the Administrator to establish an international reserve allowance program. Requires the proceeds from sales of such allowances to be used to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change on other countries' disadvantaged communities.
Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to require the Administrator to permit commercial-scale underground injection of carbon dioxide for purposes of geological sequestration.

Requires the Secretary of Energy to study the feasibility of the construction of: (1) pipelines for the transportation of carbon dioxide for sequestration or enhanced oil recovery; and (2) geological carbon dioxide sequestration facilities.
Directs the Administrator to establish a task force to study the cost implications of potential federal assumption of liability with respect to closed geological storage sites.

Authorizes the President to waive this Act's requirements in a national security emergency.

Requires the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to direct securities issuers to inform investors of material risks related to climate change.

Additional language has been added to support nuclear power:

Subtitle C Role of Nuclear Power, Section 931 Findings: Congress finds that –

(1) Under a greenhouse gas reduction program that places a cap on carbon emissions, the cost of building new reactors will be less prohibitive than they currently are without such a program;
(2) The market signal sent by placing a cap on carbon will incentivize investment in mature, zero-emissions technology; and
( (3) The construction of nuclear plants and the manufacturing of nuclear components in the United States will create new jobs for Americans; and
(4) Over 40 years of experience in the United States with commercial nuclear power plants has shown that nuclear reactors can be operated safely.

Section 932 Sense of the Senate:

It is the Sense of the Senate that a portion of funds, as determined necessary by the appropriate committees of jurisdiction, deposited into the "Low- and Zero-Carbon Electricity Technology Fund" pursuant to section 914 should be used to fund a tax policy that will incentivize the manufacturing of nuclear project components in the United States.

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