CHICAGO, Illinois—Today, the U.S. House
of Representatives Energy & Commerce Committee and its Energy &
Environment Subcommittee began hearings on a massive clean energy bill
in response to President Obama’s call for legislation to rebuild the
economy with clean energy and stop global warming.
“Today, Congress begins
its race to pass strong legislation that unleashes clean energy,
rebuilds our economy, puts Americans back to work at millions green
jobs, and ends the climate crisis,” said Max Muller, Program Director
at Environment Illinois.
Committee Chairman
Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA) released
the draft American Clean Energy and Security Act on March 31. They have
announced plans to vote on the bill in subcommittee next week and in
full committee prior to Memorial Day. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has
said that the full House will vote on the bill this summer.
The draft bill would
implement a framework for global warming pollution reductions which has
been advanced by major U.S.U.S. global warming
emissions by 30 percent by 2020 by cutting pollution domestically and
through agreements to prevent tropical deforestation. businesses. It sets
strong standards for rapidly deploying renewable energy and energy
efficiency, including requirements that utilities generate 25 percent
of their electricity from renewable sources, like wind and solar power,
by 2025, and use 15 percent less energy by 2020. The draft includes
science-based standards to reduce
The draft bill's
renewable energy standard alone would create an estimated 297,000 new
domestic jobs and save consumers $64.3 billion in electricity and
natural gas bills by 2025.
Environment Illinois
expressed concern about several provisions of the draft bill, including
“sky high levels of carbon offsets,” which provide less-certain
pollution reductions, and provisions that would weaken U.S. EPA’s
ability to crack down on some of the biggest sources of pollution. The
draft bill is also silent on whether polluters will be required to pay
for pollution—a form of
accountability endorsed by President Obama—or whether that burden
will be born by American taxpayers.
“Big Oil, Dirty Coal,
and other polluters have hired over 2,000 lobbyists to stop the
president’s plan—that’s nearly four lobbyists for every member of
Congress," said Muller. “They’re trying to mold the plan to benefit
polluters—we’re pushing back because now is the real chance for change.”
Environment Illinois
urges the Illinois members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee,
Congressman Bobbie Rush and John Shimkus and Congresswomen Jan
Schakowsky, to vote for a strong bill that maintains science-based
pollution reduction targets and speeds the transition to a clean energy
economy,” said Muller.
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Environment
Illinois
is a state-based, citizen funded environmental organization.
