On The Hill

Energy and Commerce Democrats Release Draft CLEAN Future Act

On Wednesday (Jan. 8), Energy and Commerce Democrats revealed their framework for legislation to address climate change. Chairman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) said the legislation treats climate change “like the existential emergency that it is.”^[1] Notably, the draft excludes carbon pricing, but does include ambitious goals to reduce emissions. The draft memo covers a variety of sectors in the economy, including power, buildings and efficiency, transportation, and industry. The goal of the CLEAN Future Act is to transition the United States to a 100 percent clean economy, and will “direct federal agencies to use all existing authorities to put the United States on a path toward meeting net-zero emisisons target.”^[2] For the power sector, the bill proposes a nationwide Clean Electricity Standard (CES). This would require retail electricity suppliers to acquire electricity from clean sources by 2050. The proposed CES would additionally mandate retail electricity suppliers to provide a growing supply of clean electricity starting in 2022. For buildings and efficiency, the act will establish a national energy savings target for continued improvement of model building codes. This will lead to a requirement of zero-energy-ready buildings by 2030. The draft discusses the transportation sector as a crucial component to reducing emissions. The bill directs EPA to set new greenhouse gas emission standards for light, medium, and heavy duty vehicles, and requires year-over-year improvements to those standards set in accordance with net-zero emissions by 2050. In addition to standards, the act addresses transportation fuels and low/zero emission vehicles. The bill encourages electric vehicle charging infrastructure and the reduction of petroleum-based fuel consumption. For industrial emissions, the draft bill establishes a “Buy Clean Program” that will set performance targets to reduce emissions from construction materials and products that receive federal funding. The act will also expand DOE’s role in improving industrial efficiency, and reauthorize the Combined Heat and Power Technical Assistance Partnership Program. The bill addresses super pollutants by directing the EPA to regulate methane emissions from the oil and gas sector, create a grant program within the DOE to help states reduce methane emissions from natural gas infrastructure, and includes measures to reduce emissions of black carbon.

Economy-wide policies included in the draft legislation are:

• State climate plans, including a state-federal partnership for federal action
• Creating a National Climate Bank to help states, cities, communities, and companies transition to a clean economy
• A clean economy workforce, which incorporates the Blue Collar to Green Collar Jobs Development Act of 2019
• Integrating climate change into U.S. national security planning

Energy and Commerce Democrats plan to hold additional hearings focused on the various topics included in the draft legislation and continue stakeholder engagement.

The text of the CLEAN Future Act will be released by the end of the month. To read the draft bill, click here.

Revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act

The White House released a copy of its proposed rule setting deadlines on National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews on Thursday (Jan. 9). President Trump said during his remarks at the White House, “America is a nation of builders, but it takes too long to get a permit, and that’s big government at its absolute worst.”^[3]  The proposed rule would scale back NEPA and narrow the interpretation of the 50-year-old law. NEPA presides over the construction of infrastructure projects, which includes pipelines and highways. The new rule would impose a two-year deadline for environmental impact statements that agencies conduct prior to approving projects that could seriously impact the environment, and a one-year deadline for less rigorous assessments. The rule would also increase the amount of projects that could be excluded from NEPA reviews altogether.^[4]  Congressional Democrats immediately came out against the changes. “Not only is removing these requirements a bad idea for public health and our environment, but it will end up costing taxpayers more when projects aren’t built to be resilient. You can be sure I will use all the tools at my disposal to stop this misguided proposal,” said Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Chairman of the House Transportation Committee. Senate EPW Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-DE) said the proposal, “takes a sledgehammer to decades of legal precedence and puts our communities at risk.” The rule has notably divided unions and hard-line progressives. A coalition called Unlock American Investment, which brings together more than 35 groups in energy, farming, and labor industries, supports the NEPA rule changes.^[5] The coalition includes the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, North America’s Building Trade Unions, and the American Wind Industry. They argue the rule changes will help advance transportation and infrastructure projects. President Trump often highlights the divide between progressive activists and traditional workers, especially in energy producing swing states. To read the proposed rules, click here.

HFC Bill

A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced legislation to crack down on hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) late Tuesday (Jan. 7) night. H.R. 5544, the “American Innovation and Manufacturing Leadership Act,” would allow the EPA to regulate HFCs, which are commonly used for air conditioning and refrigeration. ^[6]  This bill is a companion to Senate legislation, and both include major provisions to allow EPA regulatory authority and an 85 percent phase-down over 15 years. This legislation would align the U.S. with the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer. Although there are 30 co-sponsors in the Senate, the Trump administration’s opposition to the legislation will disrupt its path. Senator John Kennedy (R-LA), lead Senate co-sponsor, said he is waiting to lobby the White House on the HFC legislation until after the impeachment trial and ongoing conflict with Iran settles down.  Carper said he plans to meet with Senate EPW Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) early next week in hopes to convince him to schedule a hearing on the measure.^[7] 

PFAS

On Friday (Jan. 10) the House passed H.R. 535, the PFAS Action Act of 2019, 247-159. Although some Republicans opposed the legislation, 24 Republicans voted for the package. Democratic leaders in the House made the bill a priority after negotiations to add a PFAS package to must-pass end-of-year legislation fell apart.^[8]  This measure is more aggressive than the bipartisan deal under discussion in December. This legislation designates two types of PFAS substances as hazardous under the Superfund law, and tasks the agency with setting drinking water limits.^[9] Additional amendments were added during debate Thursday night (Jan. 9), including a proposal for the EPA to act on PFAS as hazardous air pollutants. Industry and Republican allies say the legislation is too broad, and several water utilities argue the measure’s Superfund provisions make utilities liable for PFAS cleanups, even if they did not cause contamination. Barrasso said his chamber would not take up the bill.

References

^[1] Adragna, Anthony. “House Democrats unveil climate change legislative framework.” Politico Pro, 8 Jan. 2020. https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2020/01/house-democrats-unveil-climate-change-legislative-framework-1858368

^[2] “The CLEAN Future Act.” Committee on Energy and Commerce. 8 Jan. 2020. https://subscriber.politicopro.com/f/?id=0000016f-86d8-dcf7-a96f-cff8d3d70000

^[3] Brugger, Kelsey. “Trump unveils landmark rewrite of NEPA rules.” Greenwire, 9 Jan. 2020. https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1062036913/search?keyword=NEPA

^[4] Mintz, Sam. “Democrats bash Trump’s NEPA changes.” Politico Pro, 9 Jan. 2020. https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2020/01/democrats-bash-trumps-nepa-changes-3975513

^[5] Brugger, Kelsey. “NEPA rewrite divides the left.” E&E News. 9 Jan. 2020. https://www.eenews.net/eenewspm/stories/1062037815/search?keyword=energy+and+commerce

^[6] Sobczyk, Nick. “House lawmakers unveil bipartisan HFC legislation.” E&E Daily, 8 Jan. 2020. https://www.eenews.net/eedaily/stories/1062022485/search?keyword=HFC

^[7] Tamborrino, Kelsey. “NEPA changes leave disaster costs to taxpayers.” Politico Pro, 8 Jan. 2020. https://subscriber.politicopro.com/newsletter/2020/01/nepa-changes-leave-disaster-costs-to-taxpayers-784161

^[8] Snider, Annie. “House passes sweeping PFAS bill.” Politico Pro, 10 Jan. 2020. https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2020/01/house-passes-sweeping-pfas-bill-3975555

^[9] Figueroa, Ariana. “House approves PFAS package with bipartisan support.” Greenwire, 10 Jan. 2020. https://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1062045341/search?keyword=PFAS