[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5047 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 5047

     To require carbon scoring by the Congressional Budget Office.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 12, 2024

 Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Welch, Mr. Padilla, 
 Ms. Warren, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Schatz, and Mr. Markey) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                               the Budget

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To require carbon scoring by the Congressional Budget Office.

    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 ``Carbon Scoring Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The function of the Congressional Budget Office is to 
        provide the Committee on the Budget of the Senate and the 
        Committee on the Budget of the House of Representatives with 
        information on budget authority, outlays, revenues, and 
        changing conditions that might impact the Federal budget and 
        the legislative activities of Congress.
            (2) Unforeseen economic shocks, such as the 2008 mortgage 
        crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, have contributed greatly to 
        the public debt of the Federal Government.
            (3) Climate change poses systemic risks to the financial 
        system of the United States.
            (4) The increased severity and frequency of extreme weather 
        events caused by climate change costs the United States economy 
        an estimated $150,000,000,000 every year, and the cost is 
        growing.
            (5) Predicted economic shocks from climate change could 
        cost the economy of the United States $14,500,000,000,000 over 
        the next 50 years, reduce the gross domestic product of the 
        United States by 10 percent by the end of the century, and add 
        trillions of dollars to the public debt of the Federal 
        Government.
            (6) Current damages associated with climate change are 
        straining the Federal budget and straining insurance and home 
        mortgage markets from California to Florida.
            (7) The exacerbation of extreme weather, drought, and 
        warming is undermining agricultural yields, the durability of 
        infrastructure, and supply chain reliability, all of which 
        contribute to rising consumer prices.
            (8) Policies that limit greenhouse gas emissions could 
        offer long-term savings for the Federal budget.

SEC. 3. GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS MODELING CAPACITY AND REPORTING.

    (a) In General.--Section 202 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974 (2 U.S.C. 602) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) Greenhouse Gas Emissions Modeling.--
            ``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    ``(A) Director.--The term `Director' means the 
                Director of the Congressional Budget Office.
                    ``(B) Greenhouse gas.--The term `greenhouse gas' 
                has the meaning given that term in section 211(o)(1) of 
                the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(1)).
            ``(2) Establishing an emissions modeling capacity.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Director shall prepare and 
                maintain economic models that can provide estimates of 
                the effect of various policies on greenhouse gas 
                emissions--
                            ``(i) for the power sector, by not later 
                        than 1 year after the date of enactment of the 
                        Carbon Scoring Act of 2024;
                            ``(ii) for transportation, by not later 
                        than January 1, 2026;
                            ``(iii) for industry, by not later than 
                        January 1, 2028;
                            ``(iv) for buildings, by not later than 
                        January 1, 2030; and
                            ``(v) for all other emitting sectors, as 
                        soon as is practicable.
                    ``(B) Annual reports.--Not later than December 31, 
                2025, and December 31 of each year thereafter, the 
                Director shall publish a report that--
                            ``(i) provides an overview of the 
                        greenhouse gas emissions modeling capabilities 
                        of the Congressional Budget Office;
                            ``(ii) discusses any updates made to models 
                        related to the greenhouse gas emissions 
                        estimating function of the Congressional Budget 
                        Office; and
                            ``(iii) discusses how any updates made to 
                        models affect the emissions baseline required 
                        under paragraph (3).
                    ``(C) Ongoing improvement.--The Director shall work 
                to continually improve the accuracy and granularity of 
                the economic models described in subparagraph (A).
                    ``(D) Existing federal resources.--In preparing 
                economic models under this paragraph, the Director may, 
                where applicable, consider using modeling resources 
                developed by the Federal Government, such as the 
                National Energy Modeling System published by the Energy 
                Information Administration.
            ``(3) Emissions baseline.--Not later than February 15, 
        2025, and February 15 of each year thereafter, the Director 
        shall develop and publish a detailed estimate of greenhouse gas 
        emissions in the United States during the year during which the 
        report is issued and each fiscal year thereafter through the 
        last fiscal year covered by the most recent baseline prepared 
        in accordance with section 257, based on laws enacted through 
        the date of the report and taking into account projected 
        economic factors.
            ``(4) Prioritization of greenhouse gasses.--For purposes of 
        economic models, emissions baselines, and greenhouse gas 
        emissions estimates under paragraphs (2) and (3) of this 
        subsection and section 402A, the Director--
                    ``(A) shall make best efforts to consider all 
                greenhouse gas emissions for any economic model, 
                emissions baseline, or greenhouse gas emissions 
                estimate prepared on or after the date of enactment of 
                the Carbon Scoring Act of 2024; and
                    ``(B) shall consider--
                            ``(i) carbon dioxide for any economic 
                        model, emissions baseline, or greenhouse gas 
                        emissions estimate prepared on or after the 
                        date of enactment of the Carbon Scoring Act of 
                        2024;
                            ``(ii) methane for any economic model, 
                        emissions baseline, or greenhouse gas emissions 
                        estimate prepared on or after January 1, 2027; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) all greenhouse gas emissions for 
                        any economic model, emissions baseline, or 
                        greenhouse gas emissions estimate prepared on 
                        or after January 1, 2030.''.
    (b) Emissions Estimates by Congressional Budget Office.--
            (1) In general.--Title IV of the Congressional Budget Act 
        of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) is amended by inserting after 
        section 402 the following:

``SEC. 402A. EMISSIONS ESTIMATES BY CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of 
        the Congressional Budget Office.
            ``(2) Emissions baseline.--The term `emissions baseline' 
        means an estimate of greenhouse gas emissions prepared under 
        section 202(h)(3).
            ``(3) Greenhouse gas.--The term `greenhouse gas' has the 
        meaning given that term in section 211(o)(1) of the Clean Air 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(1)).
            ``(4) Greenhouse gas-related provision.--The term 
        `greenhouse gas-related provision' means a provision that meets 
        any of the following conditions:
                    ``(A) Creates, raises, or lowers a tax or tax 
                credit on any aspect of fuel production or usage, power 
                production or usage, the emission or capture of a 
                greenhouse gas, or a technology or a direct alternative 
                to a technology that uses fuel.
                    ``(B) Otherwise assigns a dollar value to the 
                emission of a greenhouse gas or to the sale or use of a 
                product whose combustion or leakage leads to an 
                emission of a greenhouse gas.
                    ``(C) Sets a performance standard or cap based on--
                            ``(i) the emission of a greenhouse gas; or
                            ``(ii) the use of a product--
                                    ``(I) that directly emits 
                                greenhouse gases; or
                                    ``(II) whose combustion, leakage, 
                                or degradation leads to an emission of 
                                a greenhouse gas.
            ``(5) Relevant committees.--The term `relevant committees' 
        means the Committee on the Budget of the Senate, the Committee 
        on the Budget of the House of Representatives, the committee of 
        the Senate with jurisdiction of the relevant bill or joint 
        resolution, and the committee of the House of Representatives 
        with primary jurisdiction of the relevant bill or joint 
        resolution.
            ``(6) Significant budgetary effect.--The term `significant 
        budgetary effect', with respect to a bill or joint resolution, 
        means that the Director estimates the bill or joint resolution 
        will increase or decrease annual outlays or revenues by not 
        less than $500,000,000 in any fiscal year covered by the most 
        recent baseline under section 257.
            ``(7) Social cost of a greenhouse gas.--The term `social 
        cost of a greenhouse gas' means the monetary value of the net 
        harm to society from emitting a metric ton of a greenhouse gas 
        into the atmosphere in a given year, as determined by the 
        Director based on the best and most recent science that, for 
        carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide, is not less than 
        the amounts listed for those gases using a near-term Ramsey 
        discount rate of 2 percent in the report of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency entitled `Report on the Social Cost of 
        Greenhouse Gases: Estimates Incorporating Recent Scientific 
        Advances', dated November 2023.
    ``(b) Estimates.--
            ``(1) In general.--To the extent practicable, the Director 
        shall prepare and submit to the relevant committees a 
        greenhouse gas emissions estimate with respect to any bill or 
        joint resolution ordered reported by a committee of the Senate 
        or the House of Representatives--
                    ``(A) that--
                            ``(i) would have a significant budgetary 
                        effect; and
                            ``(ii) contains 1 or more greenhouse gas-
                        related provisions; or
                    ``(B) for which the Director previously estimated 
                the effects of the greenhouse gas-related provisions of 
                the bill or joint resolution.
            ``(2) Contents.--A greenhouse gas emissions estimate under 
        paragraph (1) with respect to a bill or joint resolution 
        shall--
                    ``(A) provide an estimate of the effects of each 
                greenhouse gas-related provision in the bill or joint 
                resolution on greenhouse gas emissions with respect to 
                the year during which the greenhouse gas-related 
                provision takes effect and each fiscal year covered by 
                the most recent emissions baseline, including an 
                estimate of the change in greenhouse gas emissions 
                relative to the most recent emissions baseline;
                    ``(B) provide an estimate of the climate-related 
                costs or savings of each greenhouse gas-related 
                provision in the bill or joint resolution, which shall 
                be calculated as the sum of the products obtained by 
                multiplying the change in the emission of each 
                greenhouse gas relative to the most recent emissions 
                baseline, as described in subparagraph (A), by the 
                social cost of the greenhouse gas during the year of 
                the change;
                    ``(C) include commentary on the expected effects of 
                the greenhouse gas-related provisions on greenhouse gas 
                emissions after the end of the period described in 
                subparagraph (A); and
                    ``(D) include commentary, to the extent 
                practicable, on the effects of the greenhouse gas-
                related provisions on global greenhouse gas emissions.
            ``(3) Inclusion in report.--If the Director timely submits 
        to a committee of the Senate or the House of Representatives 
        estimates and commentary under this subsection with respect to 
        a bill or joint resolution containing 1 or more greenhouse gas-
        related provisions, the committee shall include the estimates 
        and commentary in the report accompanying the bill or joint 
        resolution, if the committee submits such a report.
            ``(4) Estimates regarding other legislative provisions.--To 
        the extent practicable, upon a request by the Chairman of the 
        Committee on the Budget of the Senate or the Committee on the 
        Budget of the House of Representatives, the Director shall 
        publish a greenhouse gas emissions estimate in accordance with 
        this subsection with respect to any legislative provision.
            ``(5) Estimates while developing models.--If the Director 
        determines that a reported bill or joint resolution for which a 
        report is required under paragraph (1) contains 1 or more 
        greenhouse gas-related provisions that primarily affect the 
        greenhouse gas emissions of a sector for which the Director has 
        not yet developed an economic model under section 202(h)(2), 
        the Director shall--
                    ``(A) omit those greenhouse gas-related provisions 
                from the greenhouse gas emissions estimate of the 
                Director;
                    ``(B) indicate in the greenhouse gas emissions 
                estimate that the Director made that determination; and
                    ``(C) include in the greenhouse gas emissions 
                estimate the reasons for that determination.
    ``(c) Mandatory Appropriation.--In addition to amounts otherwise 
made available to the Director, there are appropriated for each of 
fiscal years 2025 through 2034 to the Director, out of any money in the 
Treasury not otherwise appropriated, $20,000,000 to carry out this 
section and section 202(h). Amounts appropriated under this subsection 
shall remain available until expended.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--The table of contents in section 
        1(b) of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 
        1974 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
        402 the following:

``Sec. 402A. Emissions estimates by Congressional Budget Office.''.
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