On Tuesday, March 21, Former Vice President Al Gore testified before a joint hearing of the House Energy and Commerce and Science Committees, then at a hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, regarding his views on climate change. At both events, Democrats generally praised Gore's efforts and questioned his strategies for implementing legislation. Republicans questioned him about the costs associated with his plans and how they would be distributed. Republicans also highlighted recent statistics that show that the Kyoto protocol has increased energy costs in Germany by 30-40%.
Gore underlined the need for Congress to act immediately to "cap" and then drastically reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. He made several recommendations:
Freeze CO2 emissions now;
- Reduce emissions by 90% by 2050;
- Use tax code to reduce taxes on employment, while increasing them on pollution, to make the tax "revenue neutral";
- Move toward a new global treaty on climate change;
- Impose a moratorium on the construction of coal-fired power plants that cannot sequester carbon;
- Create an "Electranet" or "smart grid" which will allow any customer to install solar panels and wind turbines on their properties and sell the power back to the grid;
- Ban the use of incandescent light bulbs and;
- Establish a "CONNIE MAE" financing entity to fund building improvements that would reduce GHG emissions.
On March 20, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality held a hearing to receive testimony from several utility CEOs on their climate change perspectives. The witnesses were: Jeffrey Sterba, PNM Resources; James Rogers, Duke Energy; David Sokol, MidAmerican Corporation; Michael Morris, AEP; Jackson Reasor, Old Dominion Electric Cooperative; and Milton Lee, CPS Energy. While the CEOs were in general agreement as to the need for climate change legislation, they differed on how much emissions should be cut and the timeline that should be set for their reduction.
Most of the witness questioning from Democrats revolved around what the Committee can do to assist coal-burning utilities to reduce their CO2 emissions. The witnesses had the same general viewpoints, which were to:
Provide certainty so that utilities can plan to reduce emissions under a cap-and-trade or similar program;
- Set timelines for research and development;
- Promote nuclear energy as a viable alternative;
- Adequately fund carbon sequestration research and development; and • Provide incentives for energy efficiency improvements.