[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1324 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1324

  To prohibit any regulations promulgated pursuant to a presidential 
  memorandum relating to power sector carbon pollution standards from 
                             taking effect.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 18, 2013

  Mr. Barrasso (for himself, Mr. Enzi, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Alexander, Mr. 
Paul, Mr. Blunt, Mrs. Fischer, and Mr. Crapo) introduced the following 
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment 
                            and Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To prohibit any regulations promulgated pursuant to a presidential 
  memorandum relating to power sector carbon pollution standards from 
                             taking effect.

    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 ``National Energy Tax Repeal Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) on June 25, 2013, President Obama issued a Presidential 
        memorandum directing the Administrator of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency to issue regulations relating to power sector 
        carbon pollution standards for existing coal fired power 
        plants;
            (2) the issuance of that memorandum circumvents Congress 
        and the will of the people of the United States;
            (3) any action to control emissions of greenhouse gases 
        from existing coal fired power plants in the United States by 
        mandating a national energy tax would devastate major sectors 
        of the economy, cost thousands of jobs, and increase energy 
        costs for low-income households, small businesses, and seniors 
        on fixed income;
            (4) joblessness increases the likelihood of hospital 
        visits, illnesses, and premature deaths;
            (5) according to testimony on June 15, 2011, before the 
        Committee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate by Dr. 
        Harvey Brenner of Johns Hopkins University, ``The unemployment 
        rate is well established as a risk factor for elevated illness 
        and mortality rates in epidemiological studies performed since 
        the early 1980s. In addition to influences on mental disorder, 
        suicide and alcohol abuse and alcoholism, unemployment is also 
        an important risk factor in cardiovascular disease and overall 
        decreases in life expectancy.'';
            (6) according to the National Center for Health Statistics, 
        ``children in poor families were four times as likely to be in 
        fair or poor health as children that were not poor'';
            (7) any major decision that would cost the economy of the 
        United States millions of dollars and lead to serious negative 
        health effects for the people of the United States should be 
        debated and explicitly authorized by Congress, not approved by 
        a Presidential memorandum or regulations; and
            (8) any policy adopted by Congress should make United 
        States energy as clean as practicable, as quickly as 
        practicable, without increasing the cost of energy for 
        struggling families, seniors, low-income households, and small 
        businesses.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to ensure that--
                    (A) a national energy tax is not imposed on the 
                economy of the United States; and
                    (B) struggling families, seniors, low-income 
                households, and small businesses do not experience 
                skyrocketing electricity bills and joblessness;
            (2) to protect the people of the United States, 
        particularly families, seniors, and children, from the serious 
        negative health effects of joblessness;
            (3) to allow sufficient time for Congress to develop and 
        authorize an appropriate mechanism to address the energy needs 
        of the United States and the potential challenges posed by 
        severe weather; and
            (4) to restore the legislative process and congressional 
        authority over the energy policy of the United States.

SEC. 3. PRESIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the head of a Federal 
agency shall not promulgate any regulation relating to power sector 
carbon pollution standards or any substantially similar regulation on 
or after June 25, 2013, unless that regulation is explicitly authorized 
by an Act of Congress.
                                 <all>