House Energy & Commerce Dems Unveil Climate Plan; No Carbon Tax Or Pricing; Some Emissions Standards

[hatrack]

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Under the CES, energy suppliers that do not have enough clean energy credits by the end of the year could make an "alternative compliance payment," or buy clean energy credits from other companies at auction. The door is certainly not slammed shut for an economywide carbon price, and lawmakers stressed that there will be substantial additions and changes to the draft in the coming months.

Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.), an E&C member who stood with Pallone at the news conference, said a price on carbon "has to be part of any serious plan to address climate change." After all, a CES covers only the power sector. "You have to do some sort of carbon pricing to affect economic decisionmaking throughout the economy," Peters said.

As it's written now, the bill would use a variety of other tools, including a national climate bank and state-level plans administered through EPA to reduce emissions outside the power sector.

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Republicans, meanwhile, say the draft bill ticks all the boxes for opposition, even though some of their ideas, including from committee members such as Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.), were incorporated. They've been complaining for weeks that Democrats left them out of the process, but they've also been driving solidly in their own lane. The committee's GOP has been pushing a package of 12 energy innovation-style bills to tackle greenhouse gas emissions, but they haven't been interested in setting emissions targets or taking more aggressive steps.

Ed. - Uh, duh.

https://www.eenews.net/stories/1062031477