Press Mention tampabay.com / The Fueling Station blog May 12, 2009
SACE Referenced
Climate compromise bill drops renewables target, but attracts big lobbying muscle
In this mention
A blog post reporting on a Democratic compromise climate bill that sets a 17% renewable energy target, falling short of the 25% by 2025 that groups including the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy had advocated for. The bill also removes an energy efficiency resource standard and gives away most pollution permits free of charge rather than generating revenue for clean energy.
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THE FUELING STATION
May 13, 2009
Climate compromise bill drops renewables target, but attracts big lobbying muscle
Democratic leaders in the U.S. House announced late Tuesday night that they have hammered out a compromise bill on combating climate change, Greenwire reports. The bill calls for a goal of 17 percent, according to Bloomberg.
That exceeds President Obama's target of 14 percent, but falls far short of the 20 percent in the original bill or the 25 percent by 2025 that groups such as the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy had been pushing for.
The original draft also included a separate "energy efficiency resource standard" that would have required electric and natural gas utilities to implement efficiency programs that reduce consumer demand, notes Greenwire. But that is no longer in the measure.
Instead, the utilities would get a big gift from the government.
"Instead of collecting some $624 billion in revenue from the selling of pollution permits to industry, most of those permits would be given away free of charge, in what is called a cap-and-trade system," the Christian Science Monitor noted. "There would be little money to fund clean energy or subsidize the poor for higher costs."
No matter what the House Democratic leaders agree on, though, expect a big fight both in Congress and in the airwaves.
"The number of climate change lobbyists in Washington rose to 2,430 last year -- an increase of 300% over the previous five years -- which works out to about four lobbyists for every member of the Senate and House of Representatives," the Guardian noted this week. "But since Obama came to the White House in January, the oil, gas and coal industry has increased its lobbying budget by 50%."
--Craig Pittman