March 30, 2009

Capitol Hotline (Mar. 30)

Waxman Bill Expected, House & Senate Budget Through Committee, Senate Energy Markup, Endangerment Finding, EPA & Mountain Top Removal, Todd Stern in Bonn, Major Economies Forum, G20, Maryland Passes Emissions Bill

In this issue

Hot Topic of the Week

Chairman Waxman Expected to Release Draft Climate Legislation Tomorrow

USCAN Advocacy

April Recess is a Key Time to Meet with Members of Congress

Inside the Beltway

House and Senate Budget Plans Pass Committee, "Reserve Fund" for Future Climate Legislation
Senate Energy Committee Begins Markup
White House Reviews EPA Endangerment Finding
EPA Clarifies Announcement on Mountain Top Removal Permits

Outside the Beltway

Todd Stern in Bonn: U.S. will be "Powerfully, Fervently" Engaged in Global Climate Talks
Obama Launches Major Economies Forum
G20 an Opportunity for "Global Green New Deal"
Maryland Passes Emissions Bill

Capitol Hill Events
Other Headlines

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Hot Topic of the Week

Chairman Waxman Expected to Release Draft Climate Legislation Tomorrow

Tomorrow will mark an important step forward for U.S. climate legislation, when House Energy and Commerce Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Energy & Environment Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA) will release a draft bill. The bill is expected to call for a cap-and-trade system that caps emissions 80 percent below 2005 levels by 2050, as well as a national renewable electricity standard (RES) and energy efficiency standard (EES). Last month, Waxman told reporters that his work in the House could serve as a model for the Senate.

In a letter sent to President Obama on Friday, Waxman and Markey joined with former full committee Chairman John Dingell (D-MI) and former subcommittee Chairman Rich Boucher (D-VA) noting the diversity of their districts. But, they wrote, "our districts - and the entire nation - urgently need comprehensive energy legislation that provides a pathway to private sector energy investments, energy independence, and a safe climate." The letter said that using the budget reconciliation process for energy and climate legislation "could arouse regional distrust" that would make reaching an agreement harder. In a primetime news conference last Wednesday, President Obama said the White House was focused on passing cap-and-trade legislation through regular order. "My expectation is that energy committees, or relevant other committees, in both the House and the Senate, are going to be moving forward a strong energy package," said Obama. "It'll be authorized. We'll get it done, and I'll sign it."

Last week, House Way and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY) said that he expects to have a role in the revenue components of a climate and energy package. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to bring together committee chairmen to bridge differences and map out a climate change legislative strategy. Waxman and Markey plan to hold a committee vote on the bill by Memorial Day. Rangel told reporters last week that he expects climate legislation to move sooner than healthcare. Read more at E&E (sub. req'd)

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USCAN Advocacy

April Recess is a Key Time to Meet with Members of Congress

With a discussion draft of Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman's climate bill slated to be released this week, the April congressional recess, which begins this Saturday and continues until April 19, is well-timed for members of Congress to hear from their constituents the importance and urgency of acting on climate change. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is asking members of the House to hold one event each on education, health, and climate change during the recess. The C Campaign, Move On, and many other organizations are already planning events for this time period. Just one example: Focus the Nation has 175 events covering 200 congressional districts planned for April 18. To find out what is happening in your area and to let others know what you are planning, visit or add your event to the community-wide calendar created by 1Sky. If you would like suggestions or help planning an event in April, contact Jennifer Kurz at JKurz@climatenetwork.org.

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Inside the Beltway

House and Senate Budget Plans Pass Committee, "Reserve Fund" for Future Climate Legislation

House and Senate budget committees approved their budget plans for fiscal year 2010 last week. Neither budget plan assumes revenue from a cap on carbon, but both referenced "deficit-neutral reserve funds" which could accommodate future legislation on energy and climate change. White House Office of Management and Budget Director Peter Orszag told reporters that he does not believe the exclusion of climate legislation in the budget will hamper its likelihood of becoming law.

The Senate version omitted budget reconciliation measures, while the House version included reconciliation instructions for the Energy and Commerce Committee to craft health care legislation. The budget plans from both chambers include nearly all of President Obama's requested spending on energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives, as well as increased funding for research of carbon capture and sequestration and the Energy Department's loan guarantee program.

Rep. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) introduced an amendment to the House budget that would have prevented carbon cap regulation to go into effect unless China, India and Russia implemented a similar system. The amendment was defeated in a party-line vote. Additional amendments to expand lands available to oil and gas drilling were likewise voted down.

Floor votes on both House and Senate budget plans are expected later this week. Read more at E&E (sub. req'd)

White House Reviews EPA Endangerment Finding

The Obama administration has begun reviewing the EPA's proposed endangerment finding. An internal EPA PowerPoint file leaked two weeks ago made it clear that the EPA believes greenhouse gas emissions are a threat to the public health and welfare, a finding that the Supreme Court determined would allow the agency to regulate the emissions. Once enacted, the endangerment finding could have a profound impact on every sector of the economy, affecting transportation, power plants, oil refineries, cement plants and other energy-intensive industries. EPA regulation could also help lay the groundwork for federal climate legislation and support US negotiations leading up to a global climate treaty in Copenhagen this December.

"The finding would officially end the era of denial on global warming" said House Energy and Environment Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA). How stringently the EPA regulates greenhouse gases is unclear, leading some to have concerns that the finding could provoke a tangle of regulatory requirements. In February, EPA administrator Carol Browner said that the EPA is "poised to be specific on what we regulate and on what schedule." While the EPA has regulated pollutants doing harm on a regional level, enforcing emissions that do harm at a global scale would be a first for the agency.

The endangerment finding would be yet another example of the EPA unraveling Bush-era policies. Earlier this month, the agency proposed creating a greenhouse gas emissions registry which would require energy-intensive industries to report how much pollution they emit.

The inter-agency review of the endangerment finding is expected to be completed on April 10. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson could sign the proposal as soon as April 16, just in time for Earth Day. Read more at New York Times

Senate Energy Committee Begins Markup

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will begin marking up energy legislation tomorrow focusing on four noncontroversial bills.

The bills under consideration include:

A draft bill on Department of Energy research and development programs and how to speed hiring of DOE staff and expand energy-sector work force training;
S. 661 - establish new efforts to improve the manufacturing industries energy efficiency and competitiveness;
S. 598 - accelerate the way appliance efficiency standards are set; and
S. 531 - study the energy sector's water use and find ways to reduce it.

More controversial bills will be tackled after the two-week recess in April, including siting, a national renewable electricity standard, cybersecurity, nuclear energy and coal fleet efficiency. Read more at E&E (sub'd req.)

EPA Clarifies Announcement on Mountain Top Removal Permits

Early last week the EPA announced that it was going to review two Army Corps of Engineers mountain top removal permits, leading to wide-spread speculation that the agency was putting a hold on hundreds of similar permits until it could evaluate the projects' impacts on streams and wetlands.

Hours later the agency press secretary issued a statement clarifying the reach of their actions. "The Environmental Protection Agency is not halting, holding or placing a moratorium on any of the mining permit applications. Plain and simple." The statement said that the EPA fully anticipates that the bulk of the pending applications will not raise environmental concerns." Read the EPA statement

Last Wednesday, Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) introduced legislation that would effectively ban mountain top removal. The senators said the mountain top mining produces less than 5 percent of the coal mined in the United States and that the legislation would not extend to other methods of coal mining. Read more at the Examiner

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Outside the Beltway

Todd Stern in Bonn: U.S. will be "Powerfully, Fervently" Engaged in Global Climate Talks

The United States is ready to "powerfully, fervently" engage in global climate talks said U.S. Special Envoy on Climate Change Todd Stern during the opening plenary at the UN negotiations in Bonn on Sunday. "On behalf of President Obama and his entire team ... we are very glad to be back, we want to make up for lost time, and we are seized with the urgency of the task before us." Stern also said that the U.S. team would not cast doubt on the science of climate change, acknowledged the nation's responsibility as the largest historical emitter of greenhouse gases and declared that "what matters most of all is that we get on a viable, ambitious path to mid-century so we can solve this problem." Read Todd Stern's full remarks

While he is optimistic, Stern said we also need to understand the challenges of securing an international agreement. "We don't have a magic wand," Stern told reporters after his speech. "I don't think anybody should be thinking that the U.S. can ride in on a white horse and make it all work." He also acknowledged that Obama's negotiating team will be constrained by the level of support from Congress.

The European Union and other UN delegates are pushing for 25-40 percent emission reductions below 1990 levels by 2020; meanwhile Stern told delegates in Bonn the Obama administration is seeking reductions of "more than 15 percent" from current levels. Stern said that in terms of cost the US and EU goals would be on par, and that a stronger target may not be politically or economically feasible for the United States. "I am more convinced than ever that it is important that we be guided in these negotiations by a combination of science and pragmatism," Stern said.

Stern also noted that a global deal will require additional actions from major developing countries like China, Brazil and India. "Countries that are most responsible for past carbon emissions and countries that are on track to be most responsible for future emissions must join together. That is the essence of our common responsibility and we must discharge it for the common good," Stern said. Read more at Washington Post

Obama Launches Major Economies Forum

President Obama unveiled an international forum of 17 major economies on Saturday. The Major Economies Forum (MEF) on Energy and Climate will meet in Washington, DC April 27-28 to work on creating a new international agreement to curb greenhouse gases which will replace the Kyoto Protocol when it expires in 2012. The meeting will be followed by a G8 summit in Italy in July.

The White House said in a statement that "the Major Economies Forum will facilitate a candid dialogue among key developed and developing countries" to achieve the political leadership necessary to reach an international agreement in Copenhagen this December, as well as explore "concrete initiatives and joint ventures that increase the supply of clean energy while cutting greenhouse gas emissions."

MEF represents a modified version of the Major Economies Meeting started by President George Bush, which was criticized by several UN negotiators as an attempt to undermine the UN process. However, the Obama administration believes the meetings could help in the development of an international agreement through the United Nations. The 17 major economies are Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States. Read more at Washington Post

G20 an Opportunity for "Global Green New Deal"

On April 2, President Obama will join other leaders of major developed and emerging economies in London for the G20 summit to discuss the current global financial crisis.

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the summit would be an opportunity to forge a "global green new deal," where leaders can coordinate economic stimulus spending to make a global response to climate change.

The G20 Summit will be the first major diplomatic meeting for President Obama as well as the first time that Obama will meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao. As the two largest emitters of greenhouse gases, U.S. Special Envoy on Climate Change Todd Stern and others see a strong US-China partnership as important in order to secure an international agreement in Copenhagen this December. Read more at Reuters

Maryland Passes Emissions Bill

Maryland's House of Delegates passed a climate bill that commits the state to greenhouse gas reductions 25 percent below 2006 levels by 2020. The state senate approved a similar bill, all but confirming it will become law this year. The Maryland Department of the Environment will be required to begin implementing the emissions reduction plan by December 2010.

"The economic and job benefits this legislation will spur in Maryland, as well as the environmental and health benefits as we work to protect our State's more than 3,000 miles of coastline, come at a critical time," said Governor O'Malley in a statement.

To secure more votes, the bill sponsors recently exempted the state's manufacturing industry from emission reduction requirements for the first few years. Similar legislation without this exemption had been blocked for the past two years. Read more at Forbes

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Capitol Hill Events

Mar. 31: Hearing on climate and transportation infrastructure (House Sci & Tech)
Mar. 31: Markup of international science and STEM bills (House Sci & Tech)
Mar. 31: Hearing on California drought (House NR)
Mar. 31: Hearing on agriculture appropriations (House AC)
Mar. 31: Hearing on green jobs (House ELC)
Mar. 31: Hearing on TVA coal ash spill (House TIC)
Mar. 31: Hearing on water efficiency (Senate EPW)
Mar. 31: Markup of energy legislation (Senate ENR)
Apr. 1: Hearing on wildfire suppression (House App)
Apr: 1: Hearing on farm economy (House AgC)
Apr. 1: Hearing on the future of high-speed rail (House App)
Apr. 1: Hearing on renewable fuels standard (Senate EPW)
Apr. 1: Briefing "A Call for Stronger Targets: Protecting the World's Vulnerable Communities" (Climate Law & Policy Project)
Apr. 2: Hearing on MMS oversight (House App)
Apr. 2: Hearing on public lands corps (House NR)
Apr: 2: Hearing on EPA air nominee (Senate EPW)

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