[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 398 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 398

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Green New 
 Deal is antithetical to the principles of free market capitalism and 
private property rights, is simply a thinly veiled attempt to usher in 
policies that create a socialist society in America, and is impossible 
                          to fully implement.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 22, 2019

Mr. Johnson of Louisiana (for himself, Mr. Byrne, Mr. Olson, Mr. Yoho, 
   Mr. Grothman, Mr. Duncan, Mrs. Hartzler, Mr. Carter of Texas, Mr. 
   Flores, Mr. LaMalfa, Mr. Barr, Mr. Huizenga, Mr. David P. Roe of 
Tennessee, Mr. Hice of Georgia, Mr. Abraham, Mr. Budd, Mr. Walker, Mr. 
  McClintock, Mr. Watkins, Mr. Steube, Mr. Palazzo, Mr. Marshall, Mr. 
   Conaway, Mr. Stewart, Mr. Gosar, Mr. Newhouse, Mr. Mooney of West 
  Virginia, Mr. Babin, Mr. Kevin Hern of Oklahoma, Mr. Riggleman, Mr. 
  Aderholt, Mr. Estes, Mr. Fleischmann, Mr. Kustoff of Tennessee, Mr. 
 Kelly of Mississippi, Mr. Balderson, Mr. Cloud, Mr. Banks, Mr. Baird, 
  Mr. Rouzer, Mr. Walberg, Mr. Scalise, Mr. Higgins of Louisiana, Mr. 
 Norman, Mr. Wright, Mr. Green of Tennessee, Mr. Davidson of Ohio, Mr. 
 Gibbs, Mr. DesJarlais, Mr. Brooks of Alabama, Mr. Weber of Texas, Mr. 
    Mitchell, Mr. Loudermilk, and Mr. Dunn) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 
  and in addition to the Committees on Oversight and Reform, Science, 
    Space, and Technology, Education and Labor, Transportation and 
   Infrastructure, Agriculture, Natural Resources, Foreign Affairs, 
Financial Services, the Judiciary, and Ways and Means, for a period to 
      be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Green New 
 Deal is antithetical to the principles of free market capitalism and 
private property rights, is simply a thinly veiled attempt to usher in 
policies that create a socialist society in America, and is impossible 
                          to fully implement.

Whereas, on February 7, 2019, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and 
        Senator Edward Markey introduced H. Res. 109 and S. Res. 59, 
        respectively, resolutions recognizing the duty of the Federal Government 
        to create a Green New Deal;
Whereas, on March 26, 2019, the Senate voted to invoke cloture on the motion to 
        proceed to S. J. Res. 8, a joint resolution containing the text of the 
        Green New Deal;
Whereas the recorded vote on the cloture motion for S. J. Res. 8 failed with the 
        sponsor and cosponsors of S. Res. 59 and all other Democrats voting 
        ``present'';
Whereas the cost of implementing the Green New Deal, while difficult to 
        accurately estimate due to the lack of a coherent framework, is--

    (1) estimated by the American Action Forum to total as high as $93 
trillion over 10 years; and

    (2) estimated by the American Enterprise Institute to total 
approximately $9 trillion annually;

Whereas the previously published Frequently Asked Questions document for the 
        Green New Deal (in this resolution referred to as the ``FAQ document'') 
        acknowledges that the combined resources of every billionaire and 
        company are insufficient to cover the cost of the Green New Deal;
Whereas the Green New Deal's goal of meeting 100 percent of the power demand in 
        the United States through renewable energy resources within 10 years is 
        likely technologically impossible because--

    (1) while fossil fuel power generation can be increased or decreased 
based on consumer demand, renewable energy resources are dependent on 
environmental conditions beyond human control;

    (2) according to the Energy Information Administration, the energy 
efficiency or capacity factor ratio of wind and solar electricity 
generation are 35 percent and 26 percent, respectively, while the energy 
efficiency of nuclear, coal, and natural gas electricity generation are 92 
percent, 54 percent, and 51 percent, respectively; and

    (3) according to the Heartland Institute, the Green New Deal would 
require the mining of tons of minerals that are not currently produced in 
quantities that would satisfy such an expansion of renewable energy 
resources;

Whereas the Green New Deal's goal of meeting 100 percent of the power demand in 
        the United States through renewable energy resources within 10 years is 
        likely fiscally impossible because--

    (1) the intermittency of wind and solar electricity generation 
necessitate a vast expansion of storage infrastructure, and, according to 
the MIT Technology Review, a battery system that provides just 12 hours of 
electricity storage throughout the United States would cost more than $2.5 
trillion;

    (2) according to the American Action Forum, the capital expenditures to 
transition to 100 percent renewable electricity production could cost the 
United States at least $5.7 trillion, which, based on estimates from the 
International Food Policy Research Institute, the World Bank, and the 
Economist, is enough money to simultaneously end world hunger for 20 years, 
provide clean water to the entire world, and end malaria;

    (3) according to the American Action Forum, operating expenses for wind 
turbine and solar panel maintenance and operation would cost $387 billion 
annually; and

    (4) according to the American Action Forum, the average amount of 
energy bills would increase between $576 and $3,882 per year, resulting in 
widespread energy poverty;

Whereas according to the United Kingdom Office for National Statistics, cold 
        indoor temperatures are associated with excess winter deaths, 
        contributing to an estimated 50,100 excess winter deaths in the 2017 to 
        2018 winter period;
Whereas the Green New Deal's goal of meeting 100 percent of the power demand in 
        the United States through renewable energy resources within 10 years 
        would have severely detrimental impacts to the environment and wildlife 
        because--

    (1) according to the American Enterprise Institute, the need for solar 
panel and wind turbine expansion would require over 115 million of acres of 
land, which is 15 percent larger than the land area of California;

    (2) solar farms incinerate thousands of birds each year, as reported by 
the Los Angeles Times, and according to a report published by the Wildlife 
Society Bulletin, wind turbines were estimated to have killed 573,000 birds 
and 880,000 bats in 2012 alone; and

    (3) under the Obama administration, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 
finalized a rule allowing wind energy companies to avoid penalties for the 
slaughter of golden eagles and up to 4,200 bald eagles that would have 
otherwise violated the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the 
Migratory Bird Treaty Act;

Whereas according to a report published by the College of Family Physicians of 
        Canada, the adverse health effects for those living near wind turbines 
        includes sleep disturbance, headaches, anxiety, depression, and 
        cognitive dysfunction;
Whereas the FAQ document sets a goal to replace every combustion-engine vehicle 
        in the United States, which, according to the Bureau of Transportation 
        Statistics, would require replacing the majority of--

    (1) almost 270 million cars;

    (2) nearly 12 million boats;

    (3) over 130,000 transit vehicles; and

    (4) almost 27,000 trains;

Whereas the FAQ document sets a goal to build out high-speed rail infrastructure 
        at a scale where air travel stops becoming necessary, which, according 
        to the American Action Forum, would cost between $1.1 and $2.5 trillion 
        and require the construction of 19,453 miles of track;
Whereas the Green New Deal's goal of upgrading all existing buildings to achieve 
        maximum energy and water efficiency within 10 years is likely impossible 
        because the United States has--

    (1) almost 100 million residential buildings;

    (2) approximately 140,000 schools;

    (3) over 306,000 Federal Government buildings; and

    (4) approximately 384,000 churches;

Whereas the Green New Deal calls for Federal subsidies and intervention in the 
        private marketplace, which tend to distort economic activity and 
        disincentivize innovation;
Whereas the Green New Deal and the FAQ document call for the enactment of 
        policies with no semblance of a connection to emissions or climate 
        change, including--

    (1) providing ``free'' college to all Americans, which the American 
Enterprise Institute estimates will cost at least $70 billion per year;

    (2) providing Government health care to all Americans, which the 
Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates would cost $28 
trillion over a decade; and

    (3) providing economic security for those ``unwilling'' to work;

Whereas socialism and communism rely upon dictatorships that deny freedoms 
        enjoyed by all Americans, including freedom of speech, a free press, 
        free assembly, free and open elections, due process, and a free and 
        independent judiciary; and
Whereas in the 20th century alone, socialist and communist regimes were 
        responsible for the deaths of over 100 million men, women, and children: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives 
that--
            (1) the Green New Deal would violate all Americans' right 
        to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness;
            (2) the Green New Deal would have an almost 
        incomprehensibly devastating effect on the national debt of the 
        United States, and no collection of revenue-raising measures 
        could pay for its implementation without completely destroying 
        the economy and societal fabric of the United States;
            (3) the Green New Deal is antithetical to the principles of 
        free market capitalism and our private property rights, bedrock 
        principles that have made the United States the greatest 
        country in the world;
            (4) many of the proposals in the Green New Deal have no 
        connection at all to climate change, and reveal the true nature 
        of the Green New Deal;
            (5) the Green New Deal is simply a thinly veiled attempt to 
        usher in policies that create a socialist society in America; 
        and
            (6) the United States is a free society that has fought 
        against socialist regimes for decades and must continue to 
        fight against socialism in the future.
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