Morgan Meguire News

On October 18^th, Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and John Warner (R-VA) introduced their long-anticipated climate change bill, "America's Climate Security Act of 2007."  The Senate Subcommittee on Private Sector and Consumer Solutions to Global Warming and Wildlife Protection, which Sen. Lieberman chairs, will hold a legislative hearing on the bill on October 25^th. 

The bill establishes a federal program to reduce carbon dioxide emissions between 2007 and 2050.  The greenhouse gas emissions cap targets electric power, transportation and manufacturing sources that account for 75% of greenhouse-gas emissions.  The cap on emissions starts in 2012 (based on 2005 emission levels) and then lowers it gradually, so that it reaches 1990 emission levels in 2020 and then reduces to 65% below 1990 emissions levels by 2050. 

The Act allows companies to trade, save and borrow emission allowances and allows them to generate credits when they stimulate non-covered businesses, farms and others to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions or capture and store greenhouse gases. 

According to the bill's sponsors, the Act also sets aside emission credits and money raised through the auction of allowances for several reasons:

• To protect low and middle-income Americans from higher energy costs;
• To deploy advanced technologies and practices for reducing emissions;
• To keep good jobs in the U.S.;
• To mitigate the negative impacts of global warming on low and middle-income Americans and wildlife; and
• To mitigate and forestall political instability and international conflict that can threaten U.S. national security.

Boxer is pushing for a Subcommittee vote next week so she can claim victory at the United Nations meeting in December in Bali.  It remains to be seen if there are enough votes in Subcommittee to pass the bill.