by Brad Peck

The Waxman-Markey bill remains a work in, well not exactly progress, which is why our latest letter to the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives urges each of them to oppose H.R. 2454, the "American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009." From today's letter:

As noted in correspondence earlier in the week, the Chamber strongly supports comprehensive legislation to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases while providing for a strong American economy. The Chamber also supports negotiation of a global accord to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases as the best approach to tackling this global issue.

The Chamber believes that domestic legislation should: (1) balance environmental objectives with the need for economic growth and job creation; (2) promote technology development and deployment; (3) reduce barriers to the development of climate-friendly energy sources; (4) promote energy efficiency; and (5) implement appropriate steps to address the international nature of global emissions. Although H.R. 2454 has changed since the bill was reported from the Energy and Commerce Committee, this legislation still suffers from an overwhelming number of flaws, which were described in detail in earlier correspondence.

Fundamentally, the bill fails to ensure that an adequate amount of renewable or alternative energy sources are developed and deployed to compensate for the bill’s declining cap on fossil fuel emissions. Instead, it would impose 397 new regulations and 1060 new mandates on the American public; a chart of this regulatory morass can be viewed at http://www.uschamber.com/media/pdfs/waxmanmarkey.pdf

Moreover, H.R. 2454 is not conditional on an international treaty that sets binding commitments for all major emitters—developed and developing—while ensuring that every nation retains the flexibility to attain those commitments however it chooses.

The Chamber urges the House to reject H.R. 2454 and to craft legislation that ensures that cost-effective and reliable renewable and alternative energy sources are developed and deployed to smooth a transition to a low-carbon energy future, including sources like nuclear, clean coal, and other emerging energy technologies. The House should also address the significant regulatory, legal, economic, technical, scientific, and environmental concerns that the Chamber has repeatedly argued need to be part of any comprehensive climate change legislation.

The Chamber strongly urges you to oppose H.R. 2454. The Chamber may consider votes on, or in relation to, this issue in our annual How They Voted scorecard.