Category: Pricing Carbon, Paying Dividends

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director

June 28, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act, S-2877. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of June 20-27: As the week ended the Democrats in the Senate caucused and emerged “inspired” to move forward in July with legislation that addresses the BP blowout, energy and climate issues, but the specifics remain to be seen. The CLEAR Act was addressed on the editorial pages of the New York Daily News and the New York Times, and Senators Cantwell and Collins were interviewed on MSNBC TV. Senator Mark Udall (D-Co.) was quoted publicly that the CLEAR Act should be “fully considered” by the Senate. And blog posts at USCAN and the Huffington Post referenced growing environmental movement and public support for CLEAR.

In This Issue:

1. New York Daily News columnist writes positively about CLEAR
2. Senators Cantwell and Collins interviewed on two MSNBC programs
3. New York Times: CLEAR Act “worthy of attention”
4. E&E News: “Utility-only proposal fails to move the needle on Capitol Hill
5. USCAN blog: “Obama Vows to Go Where No Man Has Gone Before”
6. Huffington Post: “Most Voters Approve Cantwell-Collins Approach”

 

#1 New York Daily News columnist writes positively about CLEAR

 

New York Daily News columnist Stanley Crouch wrote positively about the CLEAR Act in a June 21 column: “[The CLEAR Act] is a strong beginning. The legislators’ bill is well thought out. It embodies American grit and mother wit. Of it, Cantwell and Collins wrote, ‘We believe that when coupled with other new energy policies and tax incentives, this can be the basis for a clean-energy and job-creation package that can pass the Senate. The act takes a fresh approach to the persistent problem of how to end this country’s dangerous addiction to fossil fuels without harming our economy.’ Selling out to assorted far right loons may look easy and probably is, but it will get us nowhere close to handling the problems Cantwell and Collins recognize.”

To read the full column go to: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2010/06/21/2010-06-21_common_sense__crude_oil_can_mix.html#ixzz0sAmzvd5S

#2  Senators Cantwell and Collins interviewed on two MSNBC programs

Last week Senators Cantwell and Collins were interviewed on two MSNBC programs. Here are links to the interviews:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036789/#37858525

#3  New York Times: CLEAR Act “worthy of attention”

In a June 21st editorial the New York Times wrote, “A new analysis from the Environmental Protection Agency shows that the most ambitious bill before the Senate, sponsored by John Kerry and Joseph Lieberman, would cost American households at most an additional $150 a year. That does not seem too high a price to pay for helping to avoid dangerous climate change. A simpler if less ambitious carbon cap proposal offered by Senators Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, and Maria Cantwell, a Washington Democrat, is designed to cost consumers even less, and is worthy of attention.”

To read the full editorial go to: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/21/opinion/21mon1.html

#4  E&E News: “Utility-only proposal fails to move the needle on Capitol Hill”

In an E&E News article on June 22nd by Josh Voorhess and Robin Bravender, Senator Mark Udall is quoted calling for “full discussion” of the CLEAR Act: “While most Democrats were less than enthused about the utility-only idea, few were willing to close the door. ‘I think we ought to consider any idea that gets us started with a system that prices carbon,’ said Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.). He added that regardless of whether the utilities-only bill gains traction, he still wants to see a full discussion on both the Kerry-Lieberman bill and the ‘cap and dividend’ proposal from Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash) and Susan Collins (R-Maine.) ‘I think both those ideas have real merit and I’d expect them to be fully considered,’ Udall said.

For the full article go to: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1291

#5  USCAN blog: “Obama Vows to Go Where No Man Has Gone Before”

In a blog post on the website of the U.S. Climate Action Network, Keith Schneider lists the CLEAR Act as one of the main options being considered by the U.S. Senate:  “In December 2009 Senators Maria Cantwell, a Democrat of Washington, and Susan Collins, a Republican of Maine, introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for American Renewal (CLEAR) Act which would set up a program for cutting carbon emissions by selling ‘carbon shares’ to fuel producers. Most of the resulting revenue would generate checks to every American to compensate for what the co-authors predict will be higher energy prices. The proposal has attracted considerable support from environmental organizations, including 350.org, a global climate advocacy organization.”

For the full article go to: http://www.usclimatenetwork.org/policy/congress

#6  Huffington Post: “Most Voters Approve Cantwell-Collins Approach”

An article by Mary Ellen and John Harte on the Huffington Post analyzes recent polling and argues: “Message to Congress: If you want to pass significant energy legislation soon and please the most voters, you don’t have to read tea leaves to divine how. Move forward with the Cantwell-Collins CLEAR Act. While Senators Lieberman, Bingaman and Baucus start to form legislation (Baucus is creating a bill to overhaul federal oversight of offshore drilling), Senators Cantwell (D-Washington) and Collins (R-Maine) have created the bipartisan CLEAR Act, a brief bill which emphasizes regulating greenhouse gas emissions from businesses, and creating more government incentives to increase clean energy sources. Just what most American voters want, when you ask them plainly and directly.”

For the full article go to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mary-ellen-harte-and-john-harte/addressing-climate-change_b_620320.html

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director

July 2, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act, S-2877. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of June 28-July 2: Two U.S. Senators, Jeff Merkley (D-Ore) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.), spoke positively about the CLEAR Act as Senate Democrats and the White House struggle to come up with offshore drilling/energy/climate legislation that can pass in the Senate. A key, bi-partisan, White House meeting helped to focus national attention on the issue but still left many questions about what, specifically, the Senate Democratic leadership will be putting forward after they return from their July 4th, weeklong recess.

In This Issue

1. Senator Jeff Merkley: “You can’t run up the white flag until you have the fight”
2. Senator Ben Cardin: CLEAR Act “straight-forward approach” is “an advantage”
3. Washington Post reports on June 29 White House bi-partisan climate meeting
4. CQ Today:  Collins Open to Continuing Climate Change Change
5. CongressDaily AM: ‘Cap-And Dividend’ Bill Will Get A Push At White House

 

#1  Senator Jeff Merkley: “You can’t run up the white flag until you have the fight”

“Susan Collins [R-Maine], working with Maria Cantwell [D-Wash.], has injected a significant idea into the debate. It says, ‘Yes, let’s put a price on carbon, but let’s not create regional disparities.’ So the funds that are paid on carbon stay in the state where they are generated. States that put more in get more back; their families get more back. That is the CLEAR bill. It’s getting more attention. Maria did a presentation to the caucus last week, and the fact that she and Susan were there today — it just keeps getting brought up. People realize the resistance to the framework in Kerry-Lieberman. They’re looking for other ways to get this done. There are many ways to skin a cat.”

http://www.grist.org/article/2010-06-29-merkley-you-cant-run-up-the-white-flag-until-you-have-the-fight/

#2  Senator Ben Cardin: CLEAR Act “straight-forward approach” is “an advantage”

“[Senator Cardin] said an alternative carbon-pricing plan from Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) that avoids setting up a massive new carbon market could be something to build upon.
‘You’re better off having a comprehensive bill that takes a pretty simplistic approach,’ Cardin said. Cantwell and Collins ‘take a very straight-forward approach — there’s not really specific provisions in her bill and I think that’s an advantage, quite frankly.’”

http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/677-e2-wire/105949-white-house-seeks-to-thread-the-needle-on-energy-with-tuesday-meeting

#3  Washington Post reports on June 29 White House bi-partisan climate meeting

“Collins, who has authored her own climate bill with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), said she could support a price on carbon only if revenue from pollution allowances was returned to consumers. She added, ‘It’s going to be very difficult’ to find any bill that can muster 60 votes, the number needed to avoid a filibuster in the Senate. ‘The White House meeting underscored to me how many diverse views there are on how to proceed with any clean-energy bill.’”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/29/AR2010062902586.html 

#4  CQ Today:  Collins Open to Continuing Climate Change Chat

“Collins said she would like to continue a chat she had with Obama on March 9, the last time he convened a bipartisan group of lawmakers to discuss global warming. Then, the White House and Democratic leaders were focused on Graham as a possible cosponsor of a bill being developed by Democrat John Kerry of Massachusetts and independent Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut. But Graham has since dropped out of the Kerry-Lieberman talks, and Democrats know that some Republican support will be needed to pass climate change legislation in the Senate.”

http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1296

#5  CongressDaily AM: ‘Cap-And Dividend’ Bill Will Get A Push At White House

“Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., plan to tout their ‘cap-and-dividend’ climate bill when they and several other senators meet today with President Obama. It’s the only official bipartisan energy and climate legislation in the Senate. ‘I’m going to tell the president I believe the cap-and-trade approach is dead and that he should take a fresh look at the bill Maria and I have introduced,’ Collins said.

http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1297

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director

June 18, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act, S-2877. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of June 12-18:  This was the week that the CLEAR Act emerged within the Senate as one of the main legislative options for addressing the climate crisis. Senator Cantwell presented the case for the CLEAR Act within a Senate Democratic caucus on Thursday, and the next day the Washington Post carried an op-ed by her and co-sponsor Senator Susan Collins. The Congressional Research Service released an analysis of three energy/climate bills, including the CLEAR Act. And President Obama included Senators Cantwell and Collins among the group invited to a meeting at the White House next Wednesday.

In This Issue:

Cantwell and Collins op-ed in Washington Post

“There has been much talk recently about whether Republicans and Democrats in Washington can produce a bipartisan clean-energy and jobs bill. The answer is: We already have. We are leading a bipartisan effort to put a lid on carbon pollution and in so doing unleash a massive investment in clean-energy technology. If we can tackle this issue in a predictable, transparent and free-market way, we can create millions of high-paying jobs while limiting the worst effects of climate change and reducing both our dependence on foreign oil and the risk of another oil spill.”

For the full article go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/17/AR2010061704564_pf.html

New YouTube video on CLEAR Act released

The CLEAR Act co-sponsors released a two minute video this week that simply and clearly explains how the CLEAR Act would work. It is posted on youtube.com:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIuI4fInZUA&feature=player_embedded

Democrats Meet in Caucus; More to Come

In an article in The Hill, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) “declined to commit to including climate change provisions in the chamber’s upcoming energy bill and said discussions are ongoing. Reid emerged from a meeting with the Democratic Caucus that addressed the package Reid hopes to bring to the floor this summer. Another caucus meeting on the subject will occur next week, he said.

“Cantwell countered [John Kerry’s presentation] with a separate video presentation about her plan at the meeting. Cantwell and the plan’s backers say it’s a much simpler and more effective version of sprawling cap-and-trade plans. The Cantwell-Collins plan limits carbon from ‘upstream’ sectors that produce or import fossil fuels, like mining and oil companies.”

For the full article go to: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/677-e2-wire/103933-reid-wont-commit-to-carbon-provisions-in-energy-bill-says-caucus-will-meet-again-next-week-

E&E News: Senate Democrats leave energy meeting without road map

At Thursday’s Senate Democratic Caucus meeting “Senator Cantwell presented a separate two-minute video that begins with a slap at the Kerry-Lieberman proposal. ‘Unlike lengthy legislation that can be complicated to understand, the CLEAR Act addresses climate change simply, in just 39 pages,’ a narrator says, as a table breaks under the weight of legislation comprising a large stack of papers, then stands erect with the slim Cantwell bill on top. Noting that she was outnumbered 3-to-1 by people speaking for the Kerry-Lieberman proposal, Cantwell described herself as the ‘rag-tag team’ but said she may be able to convince other lawmakers to support her ‘simple,’ bipartisan proposal.”

Praise for CLEAR

At the Senate Democratic Caucus Senator Cantwell released a one-pager listing favorable comments about the CLEAR Act from a mix of newspapers and organizations:

http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1288

White House energy/climate legislation meeting next week includes Cantwell and Collins

Congress Daily reported that “the list of invited senators for next week’s meeting with Obama appears to mirror those who were invited to sit down with Obama to discuss legislative priorities in March. Others attending [in addition to Lindsay Graham, Richard Lugar and Lisa Murkowski] are Kerry, Lieberman, Senate Environment and Public Works Chairwoman Barbara Boxer, Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Jeff Bingaman, Senate Commerce Chairman John (Jay) Rockefeller, and Sens. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Judd Gregg, R-N.H. A spokesman for Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said she was again invited but has a conflict. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, on which Collins is ranking member, has a markup scheduled for that time, as well as a hearing on the Minerals Management Service. ‘So some schedule reworking is going on right now,’ he said.”

For the full article go to: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1285

FCNL urges Senators to support comprehensive climate legislation with cap and consumer protection

In a letter sent to US Senators, the Friends Committee on National Legislation listed the main reasons why the Senators should support the CLEAR Act:  “Setting a stable price on carbon–Returning 75 percent of the carbon revenue to consumers, which keeps the majority of the public financially unharmed–100 percent auction that avoids picking industry winners and losers–Restricting secondary markets and speculation–Limiting regulated entities to a few thousand “upstream” producers–Eliminating carbon offsets from the carbon cap system, and instead funding competitive agriculture and forestry emission reduction projects through carbon revenues.”

For the full letter go to: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1286

Congressional Research Service releases comparison of three main Senate bills

“This [14 page] memorandum provides a short summary and comparison of three legislative proposals that may receive attention in the Senate. While all three proposals fall within the broad category of energy and climate change policy, the specifics of the three proposals vary significantly, and their approaches vary in many ways. S. 1462, the American Clean Energy Leadership Act (ACELA) of 2009, S. 2877, the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal (CLEAR) Act and a discussion draft of the American Power Act (APA).

For the full document go to: http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/doc/CRS%20Senate%20Energy-Climate%20Comparison%20June%2016.pdf

Senator Cantwell Defends the Clean Air Act on Senate Floor

On June 10^th Senator Cantwell spoke on the Senate floor about why she was voting against the proposed Murkowski resolution to strip the EPA of its power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions:  http://cantwell.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=325600

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director

June 7, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME), S. 2877. Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of May 30-June 6:  As the Senate prepares for an important vote on June 10^th on the seriously flawed Murkowski proposal, the continuing BP oil blowout disaster has clearly had an impact on Capitol Hill and in the White House. Obama and Harry Reid strengthened their public language last week about the importance of passing climate legislation, as George Lakoff called upon Obama to support the CLEAR Act. On the other side of the country, another California town endorsed the CLEAR Act and newspapers in Seattle and Flathead, Mt. carried stories that include expressed support for the bill. And a just-released MIT study analyzes the “distributional impact” of Waxman-Markey, the Kerry-Boxer bill and the CLEAR Act.

In This Issue:

1. George Lakoff calls upon Obama to support the CLEAR Act
2. Obama declares he will find the votes for a clean-energy bill
3. Reid pushes to move energy bill in July
4. Seattle “moms in tennis shoes on it day in and day out”
5. Flathead, Montana residents press their Senators on climate change bill
6. Fifth Sonoma County, Ca. town endorses CLEAR Act
7. MIT study analyzes “distributional implications of alternative U.S. GHG control measures”

#1  George Lakoff calls upon Obama to support the CLEAR Act

In an article, “Obama’s Missing Moral Narrative,” posted on Truthout.org, George Lakoff, professor of linguistics and a prominent political analyst, called upon Obama to “support the Cantwell-Collins CLEAR ACT, which will actually cut gasoline consumption radically by 2050 and carbon emissions by 80% by 2050, while stimulating the economy by providing significant financial dividends to all adult citizens, eliminating government imposition on business, and making those who profit from selling polluting fuel pay to clean it up and develop alternative energy. CLEAR is far superior to cap-and-trade alternatives.”

For the full article, go to: http://www.truthout.org/obamas-missing-moral-narrative59968

#2  Obama declares he will find the votes for a clean-energy bill

During a major speech on June 2^nd in Pittsburgh, President Obama, “seizing on a disastrous oil spill to advance a cause, called on Congress to roll back billions of dollars in tax breaks for oil and pass a clean-energy bill that he says would help the nation end its dependence on fossil fuels. Obama predicted that he would find the political support for legislation that would dramatically alter the way Americans fuel their homes and cars, including placing a price on carbon pollution, even though such legislation is politically divisive and remains bogged down in the Senate. ’The votes may not be there right now, but I intend to find them in the coming months,’ Obama told an audience at Carnegie Mellon University. ‘I will continue to make the case for a clean energy future wherever and whenever I can, and I will work with anyone to get this done. And we will get it done.’”

For the full Associated Press article go to: http://www.ohio.com/news/break_news/95441379.html

#3  Reid pushes to move energy bill in July

On the day after Obama’s Pittsburgh speech, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid “alerted Senate committee chairmen that he plans to move comprehensive energy legislation in July. Reid asked the chairmen to recommend legislation to deal with the Gulf oil spill before July 4 so that leaders can include those ideas in the comprehensive energy package. Reid has said he would meet with his committee chairmen next week to discuss how to proceed on energy reform. He has said he would then convene a meeting of the entire caucus during the week of June 14 to talk about it.”

For the full article go to: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/677-e2-wire/101307-reid-pushes-to-move-energy-bill-in-july

#4  Seattle “moms in tennis shoes on it day in and day out”

In a letter published in the West Seattle Herald, Beth Doglio and Terri Glaberson explain that “we are two moms in tennis shoes beating the pavement to reduce our community’s carbon footprint with a fierce determination to leave a healthier planet for our children. Whether it be working to encourage other moms to find less energy intensive ways to cart kids around, run a household or pass polices aimed at curbing global warming, we’re on it day in and day out. The debate in the US Senate is finally in full swing about the policy we need – a cap on carbon. Senator Cantwell has introduced the CLEAR Act and Senator Kerry has introduced the American Power Act. For our children’s sake, we’re counting on our Senators Murray and Cantwell to continue their relentless work in pressing their colleagues to pass a comprehensive climate bill this year.”

For the full letter go to:  http://www.westseattleherald.com/2010/06/01/letters-editor/beating-pavement

#5 Flathead, Montana residents press their Senators on climate change bill

In an article in the May 23rd Flathead Beacon about local residents traveling to Washington to lobby their Senators, Kyla Wiens is quoted in support of the cap-and-dividend approach: “the Montana Environmental Information Center [does not] see the Kerry-Lieberman bill as the best climate change legislation in Congress at present. ‘We definitely agree with the goals in the bill, which is to reduce carbon emissions,’ Kyla Wiens, who tracks federal climate bills for MEIC, said. ‘Beyond that, we don’t like the way that it’s structured. ’The MEIC has long favored a ‘cap-and-dividend’ approach, where a price is set on carbon emissions and all proceeds go back to the public.”

For the full article go to:  http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/articles/article/in_d.c._flathead_residents_press_senators_on_climate_change_bill/17798/

#6  Fifth Sonoma County, Ca. town endorses CLEAR Act

On June 2^nd the town council of Windsor, Ca. unanimously decided to endorse the CLEAR Act. This made them the fifth city in Sonoma County to do so. To see a picture of the Windsor council and the other councils, go to: http://www.carbonshare.org/localactions.html.

#7  MIT study analyzes “distributional implications of alternative U.S. GHG control measures”

A just released, 48 page study by the MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change looks at the impacts of “recently proposed legislation includ[ing] the Waxman-Markey House bill, the similar Kerry-Boxer bill in the Senate that has been replaced by a Kerr
y-Lieberman draft bill, and the Cantwell-Collins Senate bill that takes a different approach to revenue allocation. We consider allocation schemes motivated by these recent proposals applied to a comprehensive national cap and trade system.”

For the full study go to:  http://globalchange.mit.edu/files/document/MITJPSPGC_Rpt185.pdf

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

 

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director

June 11, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act, S-2877. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of June 7-11:  The Senate returned to D.C. this week and jumped into the debate over climate policy via a debate and vote on Thursday on Senator Murkowski’s proposal to remove the EPA’s power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. At the beginning of the week a letter to the Energy Information Administration was publicly released, signed by a bi-partisan group of five Senators, including Murkowski and two other Republicans. It called upon the EIA to analyze the CLEAR Act. Prior to and after the vote on the Murkowski proposal, leading Democrats and Republicans in the Senate and the White House made statements about what they saw as the prospects for climate legislation, what it should look like and how and when it could be passed.

In This Issue:

1. Washington Post: Move to curb EPA action on emissions is premature
2. Senator Collins votes to remove EPA powers while reaffirming support for CLEAR Act
3. Bangor (Me.) Daily News: Climate leadership needed
4. Climate Wire/NY Times:  Murky Path for Climate Bill
5. Some optimism on climate legislation after Murkowski vote
6. National Journal: Five Senators call upon EIA to analyze CLEAR Act
7. CQ Today: Cap-and-dividend model for climate bill re-emerges
8. New York Times: Policy and politics collide on the presidential path
9. E&E Daily:  Key moments ahead as Reid maps a floor strategy

#1  Washington Post: Move to curb EPA action on emissions is premature

In a June 10^th editorial, the Washington Post editorialized: “Ms. Murkowski says that she wants Congress to design a more efficient emissions-reduction policy. We agree. And the next logical step is to insist that Congress pass a bill that establishes a price on carbon and rebates the proceeds to consumers, which would be cheaper and more predictable than EPA regulation alone.”

For the full article go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/09/AR2010060905348.html

#2  Senator Collins votes to remove EPA powers while reaffirming support for CLEAR Act

In a statement released on the day she voted to take away the power of the EPA to regulate greenhouse gases, Senator Susan Collins reaffirmed her support for the CLEAR Act: “A better way forward is for Congress to finally tackle this issue and pass comprehensive clean energy legislation.  In December, I introduced the bipartisan Carbon Limits and Energy for American Renewal (CLEAR) Act with Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA).  Our legislation would set up a mechanism for selling “carbon shares” to the few thousand fossil fuel producers and importers through monthly auctions.  Under our legislation, 75 percent of the auction revenue would be returned to every citizen of the United States through rebate checks.  The average family of four in Maine would stand to gain almost $400 each year.  This bill represents the right approach, a thoughtful approach, to spur the development of green energy and the creation of green energy jobs.”

For her full statement go to: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1278

#3  Bangor (Me.) Daily News: Climate leadership needed

In an editorial on June 10^th, the Bangor Daily News called for Senators Collins and Snowe to give needed leadership for federal climate legislation: “Sen. Collins has worked with Democrat Maria Cantwell of Washington to draft a bill that would cap emissions and rebate some of the funds raised by selling emissions credits back to consumers to help blunt an expected rise in energy costs. . . Senators must get behind whichever [legislation] has the best chance of moving forward, with the expectation that it will be amended and improved when debate starts. The bottom line is that effective legislation must cap emissions and put a price on carbon emissions, thereby using a market-type system to spur solutions — conservation being the cheapest. Sens. Snowe and Collins can tip the balance, encouraging others to follow their lead.”

For the full editorial go to: http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/145477.html

#4  Climate Wire/NY Times:  Murky Path for Climate Bill    

A June 11^th article in Climate Wire analyzed where things stand in the Senate after the Murkowski vote: “’It would be overly simplistic to say this vote is a mirror of a future [climate bill] vote,’ said Dylan Voorhees, clean energy director for Natural Resources Council of Maine. He noted that Collins and Snowe believe it’s Congress’s role to pass a bill. ‘I think it will increase expectations and hopes that they are going to step into the ring and help pass a comprehensive climate bill this session,’ Voorhees said. Collins careened away from her conservative colleagues, some of whom questioned the scientific findings around climate change. Instead, she went to the floor to promote a ‘cap and dividend’ bill she authored with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.).”

For the full article go to: http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/06/11/11climatewire-effort-to-block-epa-fails-revealing-murky-pa-31482.html?scp=1&sq=Effort%20to%20Block%20EPA%20Fails&st=cse

#5  Some optimism on climate legislation after Murkowski vote

An article in E&E Daily after the Murkowski vote gave an overview of where a number of key Senators stand going forward: “A handful of moderate Senate Republicans also insisted that while they voted with Murkowski, they too would welcome legislation. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), for example, plugged a proposal she co-wrote with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) that would set up an alternative approach for pricing carbon emissions. Clean Air Watch President Frank O’Donnell said the Republicans’ vote on the climate bill is not necessarily a signal that they would oppose a climate bill. ‘It’s going to depend on the specifics of the legislation,’ he said. ‘Of those three [Snowe, Collins and Brown], the only one that’s stepped out on this issue in a positive way is Collins.’”

For the full article go to: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1283

#6  National Journal: Five Senators call upon EIA to analyze CLEAR Act

In a June 3^rd letter to the Energy Information Administration, five Senators asked this federal agency to “analyze a cap-and-dividend bill sponsored by Sens. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Susan Collins, R-Maine. In their June 3 letter to EIA Administrator Richard Newell, five senators asked the agency for help in ‘determining the most efficient and effective policies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, protecting consumers from associated energy price increases, minimizing both regional disparities and carbon leakage, increasing the diversity and resiliency of our nation’s energy mix, and reducing our use of foreign sources of energy.’ Cantwell and Collins both signed the letter, as well as Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, committee ranking member Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio.”

For the full article go to: http://energytopic.nationaljournal.com/2010/06/senators-want-analysis-on-cant.php

#7  CQ Today: Cap-and-dividend model for climate bill re-emerges

CQ also reported on this letter to the EIA” “The chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, New Mexico Democrat Jeff Bingaman, and the panel’s ranking Republican, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, were among five senators who signed a letter, released Monday, that asked the Energy Information Administration (EIA) to analyze so-called cap-and-dividend legislation … In addition to Bingaman, Murkowski and the two sponsors, the June 3 letter asking for an EIA analysis was signed by Ohio Republican George V. Voinovich – a moderate who has expressed reservations about the Kerry-Lieberman package but has said that he wants to address climate change. His interest could provide a significant boost to the Cantwell-Collins efforts.”

For the full article go to: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1276

#8  New York Times: Policy and politics collide on the presidential path

An article by John Harwood analyzed the prospects for climate legislation: “Obama advisers insist comprehensive legislation this year, if a long shot, is not yet a lost cause. Rahm Emanuel, the chief of staff, cited potential ingredients: the Kerry-Lieberman bill; Mr. Lugar’s plan; a proposal by Senator Jeff Bingaman, Democrat of New Mexico, to increase utilities’ use of renewable energy; a plan by Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, and Maria Cantwell, Democrat of Washington, to tie carbon curbs to consumer rebates. ‘There’s enough in each,’ Mr. Emanuel said, to assemble ‘a serious and comprehensive energy bill. And you can do it this year.’”

For the full article go to: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/hfo-policy-and-politics-collide-on-the-presidents-path/

#9  E&E Daily:  Key moments ahead as Reid maps a floor strategy

In a June 7^th story in E&E Daily, Darren Samuelsohn gave an overview of how plans are shaping up over the next two months in the Senate, including these perspectives: “Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) are still holding firm on their calls for the Senate to consider their bill (S. 2877) for pricing carbon emissions. ‘At various points, more than 60 senators have said they support a market-based approach to climate,’ said David Hunter, a former Collins aide who now works as the U.S. director of the International Emissions Trading Association. ‘The challenge is getting 60 senators to agree on the same market-based approach to climate.’

Gene Karpinski, president of the League of Conservation Voters, said Obama and Reid need to immediately take hold of the drafting pen. ‘It’s not the Cantwell-Collins bill. It’s not the Kerry-Lieberman bill. It’s some new bill that they all should be a part of,’ he said. ‘It’s Leader Reid’s bill, as have been a lot of the big bills that have passed in the last year and a half. It’ll be different than either of those bills; it’ll include pieces probably of all of them. And that’s the bill that needs to move forward.’”

For the full article go to: http://chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1275

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director
May 28, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME), S. 2877. Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of May 24-28: The BP oil blowout and all that is happening in the Gulf because it is having some impact on the prospects for the Senate and President Obama to get serious about trying to pass climate legislation when the Senate returns from its week-long recess on June 7^th. An important vote, one which will give some sense of the relative strength of the different sides on climate legislation, will take place on June 10^th on Senator Lisa Murkowki’s (R-Alaska) resolution to strip the Environmental Protection Agency of its power to regulate all greenhouse gas emissions. Also happening during that week will be key climate-related meetings of the Democratic Party Senate Caucus and the Senate leadership. Support for the CLEAR Act out in the country, meanwhile, continues to grow.

In This Issue:

1. Meg Power: Why the CLEAR Act is Fair to Low- and Moderate-Income Households
2. A Comparison of Obama, Waxman-Markey, Kerry-Lieberman and the CLEAR Act
3. Why FCNL Endorsed the CLEAR Act
4. Fourth California Town Endorses CLEAR Act
5. New Mexico Councilman Publishes Op Ed in Silver City Sun-News

 

#1  Meg Power: Why the CLEAR Act is Fair to Low- and Moderate-Income Households

In a just-completed article, Meg Power, Senior Policy Advisor for the National Community Action Foundation, explains why consumer groups are supporting the CLEAR Act:  “Four national organizations that represent the concerns of low- and moderate-income energy consumers developed principles in 2008 by which climate change legislation should be measured. Two of the four, Public Citizen and the National Community Action Foundation, have since endorsed the CLEAR Act. A look at the key principle and the criteria that measure its achievement in relation to the CLEAR Act make it evident that the CLEAR Act offers America’s most vulnerable households a fair deal.”

For the full article go to: http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/blog/?p=3257

#2  A Comparison of Obama, Waxman-Markey, Kerry-Lieberman and the CLEAR Act

Devin Helfrich of the Friends Committee on National Legislation has put together a chart comparing the main elements of the primary proposals for federal climate legislation.

To access it go to: http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/doc/Comparison%20-%20FCNL%20-%20Obama_ACES_KL_CLEAR_5-24-10_short.pdf

#3  Why FCNL Endorsed the CLEAR Act

The statement below is the full statement of FCNL as to why they endorsed the CLEAR Act:

http://www.fcnl.org/energy/pdfs/Cantwell-Collins_Introduce_Worthy_Climate_bill_FCNL.pdf

#4  Fourth California Town Endorses CLEAR Act

Joining three other California towns who have already done so, the town of Cotati, Ca. this week unanimously endorsed the CLEAR Act, Mike Sandler of the Climate Protection Campaign reports. Next week the town council of Windsor will make a decision. To see a picture of the Cotati council, as well as the other three councils, go to:  http://www.carbonshare.org/localactions.html.

#5  New Mexico Councilman Publishes Op Ed in Silver City Sun-News

The Silver City Sun-News in New Mexico published an op-ed on May 24^th by Jamie Silver, town council member. Silver advocated for the CLEAR Act as the best option for federal legislation: “The cap and dividend would provide families with approximately $1,000 to insulate their homes, buy bicycles or energy efficient appliances, start a garden in the front yard, etc. Since a reduction in carbon footprint is explicitly tied to making money, the dividend approach is most likely to meet and exceed legislative goals for carbon reductions while increasing the multiplier effect of New Mexico household incomes. Simply put, cap legislation, particularly cap and dividend, is good for our economy, good for New Mexicans, and good for the planet.”

For the full article go to:  http://www.scsun-news.com/ci_15151686

CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director
May 24, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME), S. 2877. Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of May 17-23: In This Issue

Senators and environmental and climate groups have been assessing the American Power Act introduced two weeks ago by Senators Kerry and Lieberman. Majority Leader Senator Harry Reid has said that in June the Senate Democrats will gather for in-depth discussion about climate/energy legislation to see if they can agree on a path forward. Articles in Capitol Hill-based publications and elsewhere report on and analyze the options.

1. Climate Wire: Senate emissions bill in search of a few good leaders
2. The Billings (Mt.) Gazette: No one fond of Senate’s global-warming bill
   
3. Huffington Post article: K-L climate bill victimized by “stall, water-down and ditch” 
4. The Hill:  Green coalition blasts Senate climate bill
5. Huffington Post: Rabbi cries out, “Let’s believe in ourselves and make it happen.”

#1  Climate Wire: Senate emissions bill in search of a few good leaders 

In a Climate Wire article reviewing the possibilities and prospects for the Kerry-Lieberman American Power Act, Senator Cantwell is quoted expressing concern about how the process of trying to adopt legislation will proceed: “Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), co-author with Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) of a competing plan for pricing carbon emissions, said yesterday she would prefer that committee leaders get a bigger say in the overall legislation. ’I think there’s so much of a process issue here,’ Cantwell said. ‘People really want process. They just get so concerned when you don’t follow a process. I guess, the chairs, et al, will have to figure out one.’”

For the full article go to:  http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1264

#2  The Billings (Mt.) Gazette: No one fond of Senate’s global-warming bill

An article about Senate climate legislation in the Billings Gazette in Montana quoted extensively from a leader of the Montana Environmental Information Center in support of  the CLEAR Act:  “MEIC favors a ‘cap and dividend’ approach, in which the government would sell emissions credits to polluters and rebate the revenue to consumers. [Kyla] Weins said cap and dividend might still have a chance despite Kerry and Lieberman’s rollout of the American Power Act. The American Power Act is 900 pages long [actually 987] and lacks Republican support since co-author Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., pulled his endorsement last month.”

For the full article go to: http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/montana/article_883a7f2e-6305-11df-afd4-001cc4c002e0.html

#3  Huffington Post article: K-L climate bill victimized by “stall, water-down and ditch”

An article on the Huffington Post by Mike Sandler, co-founder of the Climate Protection Campaign in Sonoma County, California, analyzed the prospects for federal legislation after the introduction of the APA:  “Considering that K-L lacks any known Republican support, is it still the only ‘real’ climate bill? As Yoda once told Luke Skywalker in Empire Strikes Back, ‘There is another’: the Cantwell-Collins CLEAR Act. The CLEAR Act has been around since December, but in all the anticipation for KGL, remained a runner up… until now. Now it is the last bill with Republican support standing (thank you, Susan Collins!). Besides being bipartisan, it reduces emissions, gives most of the permit auction revenues back to consumers, invests the rest in clean technologies, and lacks the free allocations, subsidies, and offsets to coal, oil, and nuclear contained in K-L.”

For the full article go to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-sandler/k-l-climate-bill-victimiz_b_579542.html

#4  The Hill:  Green coalition blasts Senate climate bill

An article published on May 17^th on The Hill website reported on a coalition of 15 organizations, some of which have come out publicly in support of the CLEAR Act, which released a statement strongly criticizing the American Power Act: “Fifteen organizations, including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Friends Committee on National Legislation, which is a Quaker lobbying group, have formed the Climate Reality Check coalition to oppose the legislation, released last week by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.). ‘The well-being of our nation and the world are being sacrificed for the interests of big polluters, which continue to rake in record profits at the expense of the environment and the public,’ the group said in a statement.

For the full article go to: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/677-e2-wire/98243-green-coalition-blasts-senate-climate-bill

To see the full statement go to:  http://www.climaterealitycheck.org.

#5  Huffington Post: Rabbi cries out, “Let’s believe in ourselves and make it happen.”

In an article posted on the Huffington Post, Rabbi Joshua Levine Grater of Pasadena, Ca. calls for urgent action on the climate crisis: “This BP oil disaster, sadly, as it kills birds, plants, ocean life, and destroys the livelihood of our fellow citizens along the Gulf, is a reminder, perhaps of Biblical proportions, that now is the time to support, demand and execute the major changes needed in these darkening and challenging days and months ahead. . . Find out more for yourselves and hopefully you too will support [the CLEAR Act], and help enact meaningful and sustainable change, not just political rhetoric with more of the same self-destructive decisions based on lobbyist contributions and corporate power.”

For the full article go to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rabbi-joshua-levine-grater/starting-oils-retirement_b_586725.html

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director
May 17, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME), S. 2877. Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of May 10-16: Many thousands, possibly tens of thousands, of barrels of oil a day continue to spill into the gulf, and Senators John Kerry and Joe Lieberman introduced the American Power Act that they have been working on with Lindsay Graham for many months. Senators Collins and Cantwell responded with their first thoughts about the APA. On the same day that Senators Kerry and Lieberman released their bill, the AARP sent a letter to Senator Max Baucus, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, urging him to hold a hearing on the CLEAR Act and making clear their continued support of it. In a Maine newspaper, the president and CEO of Clean Air-Cool Planet praised Senator Collins for her courage and leadership in co-sponsoring the CLEAR Act. In the Washington Post on Sunday Clean Air Watch President Frank O’Donnell calls the Kerry-Lieberman efforts “a bust” and praises the CLEAR Act. And a listing is provided of all of the over 90 organizations that have come out publicly in support of the CLEAR Act.

In This Issue:

1. Climate Wire: Now launched, the climate bill faces period of hard work
2. Senator Collins responds to K-L bill, emphasizes need for bipartisanship and consumer protection
3. AARP calls upon Senator Baucus to hold hearing on the CLEAR Act
4. Clean Air-Cool Planet leader praises Senator Collins
5. Frank O’Donnell in Washington Post: Kerry-Lieberman strategy is “a bust”
6. Close to 100 organizations have publicly supported the CLEAR Act

#1  Climate Wire: Now launched, the climate bill faces period of hard work

In an article published May 13th on Climate Wire, Senator Maria Cantwell is quoted, very briefly, about her reaction to the Kerry-Lieberman American Power Act: “Also in flux are two senators who have offered a competing climate plan. Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Collins (R-Me.) introduced the ‘CLEAR Act,’ which limits carbon markets to regulated facilities, in part because of the distrust of Wall Street banks after the economic plunge. Kerry and Lieberman have a different plan. They would permit a secondary market in which unregulated traders could buy and sell carbon allowances. But they may be seeking a compromise with Cantwell and Collins by requiring firms, like utilities or banks, to provide upfront cash in all purchases — rather than use derivatives. Cantwell, when asked by a reporter yesterday if it seemed like Kerry and Lieberman were bending to her concerns, said, ‘I doubt it.’”

For the full article go to: http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/05/13/13climatewire-now-launched-the-climate-bill-faces-period-o-17963.html

#2  Senator Collins responds to K-L bill, emphasizes need for bipartisanship and consumer protection

In an article published on E&E News on May 12^th, Senator Susan Collins is quoted saying that the CLEAR Act is better for consumers: “Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said she supports a price on carbon emissions but took the release of the Kerry-Lieberman bill as an opportunity to plug her own bill. ‘To achieve success in the Senate, clean energy legislation must be bipartisan,’ Collins said. ‘I continue to believe the ‘CLEAR Act,’ which Senator Cantwell and I introduced in December, is the clean energy policy our nation should pursue. It positions the U.S. to be a leader in renewable energy and energy conservation technologies by placing a predictable, straightforward price on carbon.’

“The Cantwell-Collins bill, she added, ‘better protects consumers’ with a rebate of 75 percent of the revenues going directly to the American public and by preventing speculation in the carbon market. On both of
those points, Kerry in recent days has said his bill does even more to address those issues.

For the full article go to:  http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1255

#3  AARP calls upon Senator Baucus to hold hearing on the CLEAR Act

In a letter sent May 12^th to Senator Max Baucus (D-Mt.), chair of the Senate Finance Committee, the national AARP urged him to hold a hearing on the CLEAR Act. Signed by David P. Sloane, Senior Vice President for Government Relations and Advocacy, the letter said, in part, “AARP’s primary interest in climate change legislation is protecting consumers from having to pay a disproportionate or excessive share of the cost of any approach Congress determines. . . AARP believes the CLEAR Act presents the best policy construct for reducing carbon emissions from the standpoint of consumers.”

For the full letter go to:  http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/doc/Baucusclimate051210.pdf

#4  Clean Air-Cool Planet leader praises Senator Susan Collins

In an article in the Maine Compass, the president and CEO of Clean Air-Cool Planet praises the leadership Senator Susan Collins has shown in co-sponsoring the CLEAR Act: “Maine’s Susan Collins is showing strong leadership in the US Senate. Leading — not following political lines, bucking the tide of special interests, doing what’s right for her constituents as a matter of conscience — takes courage, understanding and patience.

“In true bipartisan spirit, Collins and Sen. Maria Cantwell, a Democrat from Washington State, are co-sponsoring legislation that would lead to significant reductions in carbon emissions while protecting businesses and consumers. Collins’ stance on climate issues in Congress shows exactly that.”

For the full article to go: http://www.onlinesentinel.com/opinion/MAINE-COMPASS-Collins-takes-up-fight-against-carbon-emissions.html

#5  Frank O’Donnell in Washington Post: Kerry-Lieberman strategy is “a bust”

Frank O’Donnell, President of Clean Air Watch, is quoted in the May 16 Washington Post as one of several “environmental and policy experts” commenting on the chances for the Kerry-Lieberman bill: “They spent months on an inside-the-Beltway strategy: offering special deals to appease powerful special-interest lobbies — oil, coal, power, agriculture, etc. — in hopes that those lobbies would persuade Republicans to sign up. So far that strategy is a bust. Fortunately, the powerful seniors’ lobby AARP has reminded us there is a more consumer-friendly alternative: legislation introduced by Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine). It would require polluters to pay for the right to pollute and return most of the money to the public.”

For the full article go to: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/14/AR2010051404235.
html

#6  Close to 100 organizations have publicly supported the CLEAR Act

As the introduction of the Kerry-Lieberman “American Power Act” refocuses national attention on climate legislation in the U.S. Senate, the number of organizations coming out publicly in support of the CLEAR Act as a better alternative continues to grow. Our best count of the total number is 93.

There are 51 signers so far of a statement circulated by CCAN and a number of other groups around the country:

350.org, Alaska Marine Conservation Council, Association of World Citizens, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Md/D.C./Va., Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future (PennFuture), Clean Air Watch, Climate Change is Elementary, Climate Protection Campaign, California, Consortium for Worker Education, N.Y., N.Y., Dakota Resource Council, Earth Charter Lifeboat Academy of Pennsylvania, Fresh Energy, Minnesota, Friends Committee on National Legislation (Quakers), Global Warming Education Network, Massachusetts, Grassroots Coalition for Environmental and Economic Justice, central Pa., Idaho Conservation League, Institute for Local Self-Reliance, International Rivers, Kinnelon (NJ) Conserves, Kyoto USA, Las Vegas, NM City Council, Lexington, Ma. Global Warming Action Coalition, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, Justice Peace/Integrity of Creation Office, Montana Environmental Information Center, National Community Action Foundation, New Energy Economy, New Mexico, New Mexico Green Chamber of Commerce, New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG), New York Interfaith Power and Light, North Carolina Conservation Network, Ohio Citizen Action, The Order of the Earth, central Pa., Organic Consumers Association, Our Next Economy LLC, Plains Justice (ND/SD/Mt/Ne/Ia/Wy), Pax Christi, USA, Polytrade International Corp., Post Carbon Institute, Public Citizen, Quaker Earthcare Witness, Santa Rosa City Council, California, Sebastopol City Council, California, Sonoma City Council, California, The Shalom Center, Social Justice Committee, First Unitarian Church of Lynchburg, Va., Sustainable Design, The Stella Group, Ltd., Tomales Bay Institute, Valley Watch, Inc., Evansville, In., Western Organization of Resource Councils

There are 42 signers of a religious groups’ statement circulated by the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns:

The Affording Hope Project, ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal, Center of Concern , Collaborative Center for Justice, Inc., Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach, Community Action for Justice in the Americas,  Africa, Asia (CAJA), Congregation of St. Joseph Justice Team, Dominican Sisters, Grand Rapids, Fargo Presentation Sisters’ Peace and Justice Center, Friends Committee on National Legislation, Holy Cross International Justice Office, Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, JPIC – USA, Institute Justice Team, Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, Jubilee Montana Network, Leadership Conference of Women Religious, Loretto Community, Loretto Earth Network, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, Medical Mission Sisters, North America Sector, Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, Justice Peace/Integrity of Creation Office, National Catholic Rural Life Conference, PLANT (Partners for the Land and Agricultural Needs of Traditional Peoples), Presentation Peace & Justice Center – Fargo, ND, The Racine Dominicans Leadership Team, School Sisters of Notre Dame Shalom North America Coordinating Committee, School Sisters of St Francis, Milwaukee, Wisconsin — U.S. Leadership Team, The Shalom Center, Sisters of Charity of Nazareth Congregational Leadership, Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, Western Province, Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Institute Justice Team, Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur Justice and Peace Network, Sisters of Providence of Holyoke, MA, Sisters of St. Francis of Dubuque, Iowa, leadership team, The Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia Advocacy for Justice and Peace Committee, Sisters of St. Francis of Savannah, MO, Sisters of St. Francis, Rochester, Minnesota, Sisters of St. Joseph of Springfield MA, Sisters of the Divine Compassion, Sisters of the Holy Cross – Congregation Justice Committee Notre Dame, IN, Sisters of the Most Precious Blood of O’Fallon, MO Leadership Team, Sisters of the Presentation, Dubuque Leadership Team, SISTERS ONLINE, Unitarian Universalist United Nations Office – UUUNO

In addition, the following organizations have publicly indicated in some way their support for the CLEAR Act: AARP, Clean Air-Cool Planet, The Nation Magazine.

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

From the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, Mike Tidwell, director
Compiled and edited by Ted Glick, CCAN Policy Director
May 10, 2010

The Chesapeake Climate Action Network has launched a weekly policy update about efforts to advance “cap and dividend” legislation in the U.S. Congress. The fight for this climate policy is currently being led on Capitol Hill by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Last December these Senators introduced the Carbon Limits and Energy for America’s Renewal Act, or CLEAR Act. Learn more at http://www.supportclearact.org.

Week of May 2-8: The devastating oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico dominated the news, while at the end of the week John Kerry and Joe Lieberman announced plans to release details about their proposed climate legislation on May 12th. Lindsey Graham has distanced himself from the process and will not be a part of this release.  At the end of the previous week the EPA had announced that they are unsure the information provided to them by Kerry and Lieberman is sufficient for them to complete an analysis of it. The Nation magazine has heard enough and in their May 3 issue they came out against “Kerry-Graham-Lieberman” and for a “preferable” CLEAR Act. The Bismarck Tribune reported that North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan “favors a plan using a cap and dividend” approach. In California and New Mexico three more towns have joined Santa Rosa, Ca. in support of the CLEAR Act. Finally, an article on the Environmental Forum section of the Reuters website ended by asking, in reference to federal climate legislation, “Why not open the windows wide and see what CLEAR skies might bring?”

In This Issue:

1. The Nation magazine calls for defeat of Kerry-Lieberman and supports CLEAR Act.
2. CQ Today reports that EPA may not have enough information to do an analysis of Kerry-Graham-Lieberman.
3. Senator Byron Dorgan quoted in North Dakota paper as favoring cap and dividend legislation.
4. Reuters website blog post analyzes federal climate legislation convolutions and calls for a fresh look at CLEAR.
5. Three more California and New Mexico towns endorse CLEAR Act.

#1   The Nation magazine calls for defeat of Kerry-Lieberman and supports CLEAR Act

In a May 3rd editorial, “Earth to Congress,” The Nation magazine refers to “some green groups, like Bill McKibben’s 350.org, [which] are pushing instead for the CLEAR Act. The CLEAR Act’s cap-and-dividend system, which works by capping CO2-producing fossil fuels at the sources or point of import, is an elegant idea; but its mandatory emissions targets are weaker than what’s needed. It covers only CO2 (not all greenhouse gases), and one of its prime virtues–that it’s just forty pages long!–means that it leaves a lot of vital details out of the picture. Still, it doesn’t pre-empt the EPA or state regulations, and its leanness means that it’s not laden with pork and industrial giveaways. Between the two [Kerry-Graham-Lieberman and CLEAR] the CLEAR Act is preferable. . . As it stands, the Kerry-Lieberman-Graham bill would vitiate many of these forums while strengthening the position of the nuclear, natural gas and coal industries. For that reason, we regretfully urge its defeat.”

For the full editorial go to: http://www.thenation.com/article/earth-congresss  

#2  CQ Today reports that EPA may not have enough information to do an analysis of Kerry-Graham-Lieberman

In a story posted in the late evening of April 29th on the CQ Today website, Coral Davenport reported on a statement released by the EPA regarding the language sent to them by Kerry, Graham and Lieberman for economic analysis “in an attempt to keep their legislation alive. In a statement Thursday, the EPA questioned if [the three Senators] were giving the agency enough to work with. The EPA said that it had received a ‘description of their draft bill’— not actual legislative language — and that modelers were ‘examining the description to determine whether it contains all of the information that EPA needs in order to run its models.’

For the full editorial go to: http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org/detail/news.cfm?news_id=1252

#3  Senator Byron Dorgan quoted in North Dakota paper as favoring cap and dividend legislation

In an article published in the May 1st issue of the Bismarck Tribune, U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan is interviewed about energy issues. In response to a question about federal climate legislation, Dorgan (and Congressman Earl Pomeroy) state that “cap and trade as we now know it is essentially dead. While the bill passed in the House, ‘it doesn’t have the votes to pass the Senate,’ said Dorgan. But a measure to stifle carbon emissions is likely, he said. He favors a plan using a cap and dividend, capping carbon but returning money to taxpayers to help offset the higher costs of energy to the consumer.’”

For the full article go to: http://www.bismarcktribune.com/news/the-changing-landscape/article_e831d902-53d0-11df-b27a-001cc4c03286.html

#4  Reuters website blog post analyzes federal climate legislation convolutions and calls for a fresh look at CLEAR

Asher Miller, executive director of the Post Carbon Institute, in the Environmental Forum section of the Reuters website, looks at the debate among environmentalists about what they should support in Congress. He reminds his readers that, “as the Graham-Reid brouhaha reminds us, political winds often shift in surprising ways. Dominating headlines these days are the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and allegations that Goldman Sachs used complex financial mechanisms to make billions betting against their own clients (which Goldman denies). So perhaps the kerfuffle over climate and immigration reform is the dust storm we’ve all been waiting for. Why not open the windows wide and see what CLEAR skies might bring?”

For the full article go to: http://blogs.reuters.com/environment/2010/04/29/paging-hugh-bennett-the-dust-up-over-climate-legislation/

#5  Three more California and New Mexico towns endorse CLEAR Act

Mike Sandler of the Climate Protection Campaign reports that two more California cities, Sebastopol and Sonoma, endorsed the CLEAR at meetings held on May 4th and 5th. This followed the endorsement on March 30th by the city of Santa Rosa. And on April 21st, the town of Las Vegas, New Mexico did the same.

For further information, including pictures, go to:   http://www.carbonshare.org/localactions.html

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CCAN encourages readers of the Cap and Dividend Policy Update to distribute it to others who might be interested. We welcome input on the contents of this publication and ideas for what could be included. Send to Ted Glick at ted@chesapeakeclimate.org. To find out more about CCAN go to http://www.chesapeakeclimate.org.

 

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