House Democrats will continue devoting floor time to energy issues
with a vote today to limit speculative trading in commodity futures
markets. The bill, H.R.
6604, will be
brought under a closed rule that does not allow amendments except a
GOP alternative to be offered in the form of
a motion to recommit. Except for a few technical details that keep the
bill within the jurisdiction of the Agriculture Committee, the
legislation is nearly identical to the speculation bill that did not
pass before the August recess. In July, the legislation failed to win
the two-thirds votes necessary to pass under expedited rules Democrats
used to eliminate the possibility of Republicans attempting amendments
on offshore drilling. The bill did obtain a majority vote of 276-151.
Republicans will likely attempt to use the motion to recommit to
replace the bill with a GOP comprehensive
energy bill that includes lifting the moratorium on oil and gas
drilling on the outer continental shelf and provisions supporting
clean coal, nuclear and conservation initiatives.
Yesterday, the Republican motion to recommit failed
191-226.
As votes near this evening on the “all of the above” Democratic energy
package (H.R.
6899),
National Wildlife Federation president Larry Schweiger sent a letter to
Congress
opposing the bill because it lifts the oil shale moratorium. He writes:
The public, including National Wildlife Federation’s four million
members and supporters, wants Congress to take the urgent and
necessary steps that will give consumers better energy choices, cut
oil dependency and cut global warming pollution. While we favor many
provisions in the Comprehensive American Energy Security and Taxpayer
Protection Act (H.R. 6899), especially when compared to the expected
motion to recommit, we oppose the bill because of its provision
allowing commercial oil shale leasing. As a result of this provision,
the bill fails to address the fundamental challenge of avoiding
significant new increases in global warming pollution and protecting
important wildlife habitat on our public lands.
League of Conservation Voters President Gene Karpinski issued the
following statement opposing the Republican motion to recommit:
Drilling is no longer the issue – unfortunately, both H.R. 6899 and
the motion to recommit include drilling. The issue today is whether or
not each Member of Congress will stand up for the American people or
stand with the oil industry lobbyists.
All summer, Republicans have called for an ‘All of the Above’ plan on
energy. Now, presented with a compromise that gives them everything
they’ve asked for, the Republican leadership refuses to support it.
Instead, they offer a motion to recommit, which will remove every
provision from the bill that Big Oil doesn’t like: provisions that
reduce tax breaks to Big Oil and extend them to renewable energy
companies, increase efficiency, and create the first national
renewable energy standard.
How each member votes will highlight the real differences between
those in Congress who support clean energy as central to America’s
energy future, and those who remain tied to big oil and want to keep
us stuck in the past. LCV opposes the motion
to recommit and calls on the Members of Congress who support it to
stop working for the oil companies and start working for the American
people.
Reps. Nick Rahall (D-W.V.), Gene Green (D-Texas), George Miller
(D-Calif.), and John Dingell (D-Mich.) have unveiled the House
Democratic “all of the above” energy package, The Comprehensive American
Energy and Security, Consumer Protection Act (H.R. 6899), which lifts
the moratorium on offshore drilling and calls for massive investments in
natural gas, oil, and coal, as well ethics reform for the
MMS, support for public transit, and a suite
of energy efficiency and renewable energy incentives and standards paid
for by eliminating some oil subsidies.
Many elements are drawn from previous House bills—H.R. 5351, H.R. 3221,
H.R. 6, H.R. 4520, H.R. 6578, H.R. 6078, H.R. 6052, H.R. 6515.
At Climate
Progress,
Joe Romm reviews the full text of the draft “Gang of Ten” energy
legislation, now unofficially co-sponsored by ten Democrats and ten
Republicans. The original ten senators are conservative and
industry-friendly. Highlights of Romm’s review:
Title II makes clear that the “consumer tax credits for advanced
vehicles” is focused on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV), see
Section 202 (page 17). The tax credit is “$2,500, plus $400 for each
kilowatt hour of traction battery capacity in excess of 4 kilowatt
hours” with a cap at $7,500. A midsized
PHEV might consume 0.3 to 0.4
kilowatt-hours per mile when it runs on electricity (yes, Toyota may
well do better than that, but I doubt GM will).
So a PHEV20 (one with a 20-mile range
running only on electricity) might have a battery capacity 7 kwh,
and get a $3700 tax credit. The Chevy Volt is supposed to be 40-mile
electric range and get about $6500.
Section 254 (page 114) has a geothermal heat pump tax credit up to
$2000 and Section 282 (page 168) has a 2-year accelerated
depreciation period for geothermal systems.
Title IV, Subtitle B “Coal-to-Liquid” (page 191) is a tad confusing,
but it doesn’t look to me like it’s going to jumpstart the industry,
since it requires carbon capture and storage and requires lifecycle
greenhouse gas emissions from liquid coal to be no greater than that
from conventional petroleum — a very high bar to jump.
Subtitle C “Nuclear Power” (page 203) has a bad provision that says
the Secretary of Energy “shall begin construction of a spent fuel
recycling research and development facility not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this Act.” Recycling is of course a
euphemism for
reprocessing.
Subtitle D “Tax Provisions” (page 218) has a short section on
enhanced oil recovery that I think is the worst provision in the
bill.
In August, Tom Friedman penned “Eight Strikes and You’re
Out” on
McCain’s record on extending renewable energy production and investment
tax credits:
Senator McCain did not show up for the crucial vote on July 30, and
the renewable energy bill was defeated for the eighth time. In fact,
John McCain has a perfect record on this renewable energy legislation.
He has missed all eight votes over the last year — which effectively
counts as a no vote each time. Once, he was even in the Senate and
wouldn’t leave his office to vote.
The eight votes:
July 30: S. 3335 filibustered 51-43 [Roll Call
#192]
June 17: H.R. 6049 filibustered 52-44 [Roll Call
#150]
June 10: H.R. 6049 filibustered 50-44 [Roll Call
#147]
April 10: S. Amdt. 4419 (tax credits without offsets, attached to Dodd
housing bill) passes 88-8 [Roll Call
#95]
February 6: S. Amdt 3983 to H.R. 5140 (tax credits without offsets,
attached to stimulus package) filibustered by one vote (58-41; Reid
procedural vote with GOP, McCain not voting)
[Roll Call
#8]
December 13: H.R. 6 filibustered by one vote (59-40; Landrieu with
GOP, McCain not voting) [Roll Call
#425]
December 7: H.R. 6 filibustered 53-42 [Roll Call
#416]
June 21: S.Amdt. 1704 filibustered 57-36 (Landrieu with
GOP, Boxer, Brownback, Coburn, Johnson,
McCain, Sessions not voting) [Roll Call
#223]
The one time the tax credit extension passed, it was known to be a
deal-breaker in the House, since there was no funding mechanism approved
and it was tied to the housing bill.
See Hill Heat’s earlier
timeline
of Republican obstruction on extending the renewable tax credits.
According to E&E
News, Democratic
leadership plans to unveil an “all of the above” energy package today or
tomorrow which likely has the following components:
Expansion of OCS leasing to include areas off the coasts of the
Carolinas, Virginia and Georgia, and possibly the eastern Gulf of
Mexico as well. A bipartisan Senate plan known informally as the “Gang
of 10” proposal would allow drilling in these regions no closer than
50 miles from shore. But House lawmakers and aides did not say how
close to shore their plan would allow drilling.
New revenues from oil companies. A Democratic leadership aide said
the bill may include provisions to ensure payment of royalties from
late-1990s deepwater Gulf of Mexico leases that currently allow
royalty waivers regardless of energy prices. The absence of
price-based limits on these royalty waivers could cost the Treasury as
much as $14.7 billion over 25 years, according to the Government
Accountability Office. The bill may also include the repeal of the
Section 199 tax deduction for major oil companies. This plan, past
versions of which have also frozen the deduction at 6 percent for
non-majors, raises roughly $13.6 billion over a decade, the Joint
Committee on Taxation estimated in June.
A so-called renewable electricity standard that requires utilities
to supply escalating amounts of power from sources like wind and
geothermal power. The House Democrats plan to include a standard of 15
percent by 2020, an aide said, akin to a measure the House approved
last year that did not survive negotiations with the Senate. The plan
allows roughly a fourth of the standard to be met with efficiency
measures.
Extension of renewable energy and energy efficiency tax credits.
E&E also reports that Pelosi indicated “the energy bill might include
support for automakers’ retooling to make more efficient vehicles.”
This could also be part of an economic stimulus package being prepared
or the continuing resolution to extend government spending beyond the
Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year, she said.
Yesterday, the Center for American Progress released Green
Recovery,
a new report by Dr. Robert Pollin and University of Massachusetts
Political Economy Research Institute economists. This report
demonstrates how a new Green Recovery program that invests $100 billion
over two years would create 2 million new jobs, with a significant
proportion in the struggling construction and manufacturing
sectors.
It is clear from this research that a strategy to invest in the greening
of our economy will create more jobs, and better jobs, compared to
continuing to pursue a path of inaction marked by rising dependence on
fossil fuel
billionaires.
To create 2 million new jobs within two
years,
the overall level of fiscal expansion will need to be around $100
billion, or roughly the same as the portion of the April 2008 stimulus
program that was targeted at expanding household consumption. This green
economic recovery program will create more jobs and better paying jobs.
If Congress were to decide as part of a domestic oil production and gas
price reduction effort to spend $100 billion on new oil and gas
subsidies and subsidizing gasoline and oil prices, only a quarter as
many jobs would be created:
Top House Democrats say that shortly after Congress reconvenes, they
will put on the floor a piece of legislation that will include an
expansion of offshore drilling but also a renewable electricity
mandate, energy-efficiency standards for buildings and oil industry
tax provisions.
Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) described the plan as “a political reverse
takedown on the Republicans,” by calling the
GOP bluff on their calls for an “All of the
Above” energy agenda. David Sandalow, an adviser to Sen. Barack Obama
(D-Ill.), told E&E News: “We’ll see whether the proponents of all of the
above can take yes for an answer.”
Renewable electricity standards, building efficiency standards, and oil
tax provisions have repeatedly passed the House over Republican
opposition, but have died in Republican filibusters in the Senate.
The legislative plan will represent a compromise from the agendas of the
various national lobbying campaigns by outside organizations:
Al Gore’s We Campaign’s call for a 100% renewable electricity standard
by 2018;
Newt Gingrich’s American Solutions For Winning the Future’s call for
expanded drilling;
T. Boone Pickens’ call for new grid development, tax incentives for
wind and solar, and subsidies for natural gas;
The coal industry’s American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity’s
call for increased advanced coal technology subsidies.
ACCCE
and
Pickens
each have had a significant presence at the national conventions.
On a lighter note, as Open Left’s Matt Stoller found, the people
employed by ACCCE to spread the “clean
coal” message in Denver
weren’t necessarily all up to speed.
In a news
release,
the National Wildlife Federation’s climatologist Amanda Staudt warns
that “this hurricane season is a stark reminder of what science tells us
to expect from a new era of stronger hurricanes fueled by global
warming: higher wind speeds, more precipitation, and bigger storm surge
in the coming decades.”
Scientific findings she notes:
“The big picture is that global warming is allowing hurricanes to pack
a bigger punch. Over this century, windspeeds could increase 13
percent and rainfall could increase 31 percent.”
“Even storms that do not reach category 3 and above will hit harder
because they will likely bring more rain than a similar storm would
have just a few decades ago. It is a law of physics that warmer air is
able to carry more water.”
“Both Tropical Storm Fay and Hurricane Gustav brought costly flooding,
with rainfall totals exceeding 10 inches in some locations. As the
remnants of Gustav continue to bring heavy rains, much of the lower
Mississippi valley remains under flood watch.”
“We must restore the coastal wetlands, lowlands, and barrier islands
that provide the first line of defense against hurricanes,” advises Dr.
Staudt. “For example, about half of the wetlands around New Orleans have
been lost in recent years. Because scientists estimate that every mile
of healthy wetlands can trim about 3-9 inches off a storm surge – and an
acre of wetlands is estimated to reduce hurricane damage by $3,300 – we
must restore these wetlands.”
For more, read the full NWF
report
on the influence of global warming on the destruction caused by tropical
storms.
President Bush exploited this morning’s press briefing on the “follow-up
efforts” to Hurricane Gustav to attack Congress about lifting the
offshore drilling moratorium. Stating that “what happens after the storm
passes is as important as what happens prior to the storm arriving,” he
made the declaration that “our discussion here today is about
energy.”
Bush wasn’t referring to the 1.4 million
Louisianans
who have lost power due to the storm’s destructive force, and chose not
to mention the 102 deaths caused by
Gustav.
Instead, he went on the attack:
I know that Congress has been on recess for a while, but this issue
hasn’t gone away. And, uh, this storm should not cause members of
Congress say well, we don’t need to address our energy independence.
It ought to cause the Congress to step up their need to address our
dependence on foreign oil. And one place to do so is to give us a
chance to explore in environmentally friendly ways on the Outer
Continental Shelf.
Watch it:
MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough
were both floored by Bush’s decision “to use another hurricane in
Louisiana to promote offshore drilling at this point,” after he
“performed so poorly during Hurricane Katrina.”
Let’s be very clear. Number one: There’s no such thing as American
oil any more. These are multinational corporations. If you let
multinational corporations drill all this oil, they’re going to sell
it to the highest bidder, whether it’s China, or India, it doesn’t
matter. Why would we throw away America’s beauty chasing the lost
drops of oil, so multinational corporations can sell it to India and
China?
And people also got to remember, we didn’t stop this as an
environmental issue. We didn’t stop offshore drilling for the
duckies and the fishies. We stopped it because coastline communities
were suffering. Because the property owners, the children who live
in those coastline communities – not when there were oil spills – but
every day, when your child goes out to swim, he comes back covered in
oil, you have to use gasoline to get the oil off your child. That was
happening coast to coast
