[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5575 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5575

  To require new coal-fired electric generating units to use state-of-
the-art control technology to capture and permanently sequester carbon 
               dioxide emissions, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 11, 2008

Mr. Waxman (for himself and Mr. Markey) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require new coal-fired electric generating units to use state-of-
the-art control technology to capture and permanently sequester carbon 
               dioxide emissions, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Moratorium on Uncontrolled Power 
Plants Act of 2008.''

SEC. 2. MORATORIUM.

    (a) CO2 Sequestration Required.--Effective upon the date of 
enactment of this Act, no permitting authority shall issue a permit for 
a proposed new coal-fired electric generating unit under the Clean Air 
Act, unless the permit requires the unit to use state-of-the-art 
control technology to capture and permanently sequester carbon dioxide 
emissions from such unit.
    (b) Duration of Moratorium.--This moratorium shall apply until such 
time as a comprehensive program to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases 
is in effect.

SEC. 3. GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSION ALLOWANCES.

    (a) Allowances.--No new coal-fired electric generating unit that--
            (1) commences construction after the date of introduction 
        of this Act; and
            (2) does not install and operate state-of-the-art control 
        technology to control carbon dioxide emissions from such unit;
shall receive greenhouse gas emission allowances free of charge or at 
any price less than the market price under any future program to 
address global warming adopted by Congress or the Environmental 
Protection Agency.
    (b) Other Sources.--Nothing shall be implied from this section with 
respect to the potential allocation of allowances to any source not 
barred from receiving allowances by the previous sentence.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    For the purposes of this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
            (2) Coal-fired electric generating unit.--The term ``Coal-
        fired electric generating unit'' means an electric utility unit 
        that uses coal, petroleum coke, coal refuse, or a synthetic gas 
        derived from coal either exclusively, in any combination 
        together, or in any combination with other fuels in any amount.
            (3) Comprehensive program.--The term ``Comprehensive 
        program'' means a program adopted by Congress or the 
        Environmental Protection Agency that requires immediate and 
        significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions across the 
        U.S. economy and increases the reductions over time to reduce 
        U.S. greenhouse gas emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels 
        by 2050.
            (4) Greenhouse gas.--The term ``greenhouse gas'' means--
                    (A) carbon dioxide;
                    (B) methane;
                    (C) nitrous oxide;
                    (D) hydrofluorocarbons;
                    (E) perfluorocarbons;
                    (F) sulfur hexafluoride; or
                    (G) any other anthropogenically-emitted gas that 
                the Administrator, after notice and comment, determines 
                contributes to global warming to a non-negligible 
                degree.
            (5) State-of-the-art control technology.--The term ``state-
        of-the-art control technology'' means technology that captures 
        not less than 85 percent of the total carbon dioxide produced 
        by the unit on an annual average basis and permanently 
        sequesters that carbon dioxide in a geological formation 
        approved by the Administrator in a manner that prevents its 
        later release into the atmosphere.
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