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I haven’t been able to get to this because of health care stuff, but it’s pretty amazing: in their desire to attract industry support for a climate bill, the triumvirate trying to marshal support may have agreed to preventing the EPA from rulemaking on carbon:
Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) shared an eight-page outline of their draft legislation that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the next four decades, including provisions to limit business costs while ramping up domestic production of oil, gas and nuclear power.
According to several sources in the meeting room, the bill calls for greenhouse gas curbs across multiple economic sectors, with a 2020 target of reducing emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels and an 80 percent limit at midcentury. Power plant emissions would be regulated in 2012, with other major industrial sources being phased in starting in 2016.
In a bow to industry demands, the senators’ proposal would pre-empt U.S. EPA climate regulations under the Clean Air Act and halt dozens of state climate laws and regulations now on the books.
That’s un-frickin-believable. Here in California we already have a pretty strong standard with AB32, which is under attack by Texas oil companies, who are threatening to put a repeal on the ballot. But Kerry-Graham-Lieberman might do it for them.
I’m with Michael Kieschnick on this one – stop pushing for a climate bill already. The compromises made to attract industry support wouldn’t just make it useless, but far worse than the status quo. Let the EPA do its job; they have a far better chance of being successful.
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“with a 2020 target of reducing emissions by 17 percent below 2005 levels and an 80 percent limit at midcentury.” ; and that won’t get what’s needed accomplished.
Truly sad that the U.S. no longer has any politicians with the guts to tell the American people the realities of the situation.
Why is Kerry giving those guys so much leeway to get a bill without really producing the best results? Is Kerry so weak he thinks he has to compromise with them to get a bill? Idiot. Republicans want a bill, so they won’t be wiped out by young voters in the future. Dems hold all the cards on this. We have the EPA, so we don’t need legislation. We can promote green, so we don’t need to legislate. Republicans NEED legislation, so let them give us what we want it to be.
Kerry isn’t in a weak position to negotiate. He should take ‘em to the cleaners if we have to produce a bill at all. But, one caveat, NO TAXES!