[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 90 (Wednesday, June 6, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7181-S7184]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. COLLINS (for herself and Mr. Lieberman):
  S. 1554. A bill to comprehensively address challenges relating to 
energy independence, air pollution, and climate change facing the 
United States; to the Committee on Finance.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Energy 
Independence, Clean Air, and Climate Security Act of 2007. This 
legislation takes an integrated approach that is much needed and long 
overdue if we are to address effectively three intertwined issues of 
crucial importance to our Nation's economy and security and to the 
health of our people and our planet. I am very pleased to be joined on 
this legislation by Senator Lieberman, a true leader on energy, climate 
change, and environmental issues.
  The majority leader has announced the Senate may well take up a broad 
package of energy legislation next week. The bill I am introducing 
today lays out my own vision of how our Nation can best address its 
energy problems.
  If Mark Twain were with us today, it is not hard to imagine he would 
rephrase his famous quip about the weather to something along the lines 
of: Everyone talks about climate change and energy independence, but 
nobody does anything about it.
  Since the actions we take to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, to 
clean our air, and to reduce our contribution to climate change all 
affect each other, it is necessary we develop a comprehensive strategy 
for all three of these challenges.
  Indeed, since the oil embargo of 1973, through 17 Congresses and 7 
different Presidents, energy efficiency and energy independence have 
generated a lot

[[Page S7182]]

of talk, some pretty good ideas, and a lot of promises but not enough 
concerted, determined, coordinated action. During these 34 years, our 
Nation's imports of foreign oil have soared from less than 35 percent 
to more than 60 percent, leaving us dangerously reliant on unstable 
regions of the world in order to fuel our Nation and our economy.
  In addition to our increased reliance on foreign oil, we are also 
consuming more and more electricity. As demand puts increasing pressure 
on supply, electricity prices have soared. In the summer, when air-
conditioners struggle to keep up with rising temperatures, we run the 
risk of blackouts, brownouts, and price spikes.
  At the same time, our greenhouse gas emissions have soared, leading 
to virtually indisputable evidence that human activity is contributing 
to climate change. In the United States, emissions of the primary 
greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, have risen more than 20 percent since 
1990. Globally, carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere now far 
exceed the natural range over the last 650,000 years. We know this from 
scientific analyses of ice cores and other evidence.
  According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the 
increase in greenhouse gas emissions has already increased global 
temperatures and has likely contributed to more extreme weather events, 
such as droughts and floods. These emissions will continue to change 
the climate, causing warming in most regions and likely causing more 
floods, droughts, and an increase in the intensity of hurricanes.
  Climate change is not the only environmental problem caused by fossil 
fuel use. The quality of our air also suffers. Although we have made 
some important strides in improving air quality since the 1970s, we 
have not done enough. Fossil fuel use is the primary cause of mercury 
pollution, smog, and acid rain that continue to plague our Nation. 
Indeed, air pollution causes thousands of asthma attacks and costs many 
lives annually.
  The time has come to address our air quality, climate change, high 
energy prices, and dangerous reliance on foreign oil. The legislation I 
am introducing today is, I believe, the first Senate bill that would 
address all these problems in a single, integrated approach. There have 
been many bills introduced that address one of these problems. This is 
an attempt to have a comprehensive approach and to recognize that each 
of these problems affects the other.
  My legislation focuses primarily on two sectors of the economy: 
electricity and transportation. Together, these two sectors account for 
73 percent of carbon dioxide emissions. Electricity generation accounts 
for more than 40 percent of our carbon dioxide emissions. More than 80 
percent of these emissions are attributable to coal-fired powerplants. 
Coal-fired powerplants are also the single largest source of mercury 
pollution, smog, and acid rain. Between 1990 and 2004, emissions from 
these sectors increased by 27 percent.
  My legislation requires utilities to reduce carbon dioxide emissions 
to 1990 levels by the year 2020, while also addressing the emissions 
that cause smog, acid rain, and mercury pollution. It includes a 
renewable portfolio standard which would help to diversify our 
electricity supplies and energy efficiency resource standards that the 
Alliance to Save Energy estimates would save consumers, over time, 
billions of dollars on their electricity bills.

  The transportation sector, which relies almost entirely on oil, is 
not only partly responsible for our dangerous reliance on foreign oil 
but also accounts for 33 percent of carbon dioxide emissions. My 
legislation would help to reduce emissions from this sector through a 
combination of provisions such as CAFE standards for automobiles and 
heavy-duty trucks, tax incentives for consumers to encourage them to 
purchase hybrid and alternative fueled vehicles, incentives for 
manufacturers to produce the next generation of energy-efficient 
vehicles, and a low carbon fuel standard that will help to replace some 
gasoline with biofuels. Taken together, these provisions will 
substantially reduce our reliance on foreign oil, while reducing 
greenhouse gas emissions by hundreds of millions of tons.
  I wish to make clear the choice is not between hobbling our Nation's 
economy and protecting our environment. This legislation is based on 
the principle that research, development, and implementation of new 
approaches to energy independence and environmental stewardship will 
provide a powerful new stimulus for our economy. All too often, we are 
confronted with proposals to address one issue that only aggravate 
another problem. The integrated approach I am proposing will help us 
break through that impasse.
  This legislation does not attempt to reinvent the wheel. In fact, it 
incorporates several good ideas from my colleagues that have been 
introduced as separate bills, many of which I have cosponsored, such as 
the Ten-in-Ten and other CAFE bills, the DRIVE Act, and the Clean Power 
Act. It includes provisions of legislation I have introduced to address 
abrupt climate change and to eliminate certain tax credits for the oil 
industry. It contains many of the excellent energy efficiency 
provisions in the Energy for Our Future Act introduced by 
Representative Chris Shays in the House.
  My bill is also complementary with the McCain-Lieberman Climate 
Stewardship and Innovation Act. We need to pass that bill in order to 
establish a nationwide cap and trade program for addressing climate 
change. However, the regulations to implement that could take many 
years. The legislation I am proposing today will help us take some 
early action to help achieve the targets in the McCain-Lieberman bill.
  I believe the first step toward energy independence is to make 
better, more efficient use of our current energy supplies. The first 
title of this bill tackles that issue on several fronts.
  It would implement the ``Ten-in-Ten'' legislation I have co-sponsored 
with Senators Feinstein and Snowe to increase fuel economy standards to 
35 miles per gallon by 2016. It would then go a step further and 
increase CAFE standards to 45 miles per gallon by 2025. This provision 
would save approximately 2.5 million barrels of oil per day.
  It would help consumers buy more fuel-efficient cars by repealing the 
phase-out of the tax credit for hybrid vehicles, which is scheduled to 
sunset at the end of 2009. It would also require light trucks that use 
diesel fuel to meet more stringent EPA emission standards in order to 
qualify for the lean-burn credit.
  Public transportation is one of the most effective ways we can get 
more passenger miles per gallon. This legislation would promote the 
development and use of public transportation by subsidizing fares, 
encouraging employers to assist their employees with fares, and 
authorizing funding to build energy-efficient and environmentally 
friendly modes of transport, such as clean buses and light rail.
  It would direct the Department of Transportation to designate 20 
Transit-Oriented Development Corridors in urban areas by 2015, and 50 
by 2025. These TOD Corridors would be developed with the aid of grants 
to state and local governments to construct or improve facilities for 
motorized transit, bicycles, and pedestrians. These provisions would be 
funded by an authorization of $500 million per year from 2007 through 
2016.
  We must do more to encourage the development and manufacture of 
energy-efficient vehicles. This legislation would create a 20-percent 
investment tax credit for automobile manufacturers, and a fuel economy 
achievement credit for manufacturers that have a combined fleet fuel 
economy that exceeds that of their 2005 model year. This credit would 
begin at 5 percent next year and rise to 50 percent in 2015.
  And we must do more to help existing vehicles be as energy efficient 
as possible. This legislation would direct the DOT to create a National 
Tire Fuel Efficiency Program that would include tire testing and 
labeling, energy-efficient tire promotions through incentives and 
information, and the creation of minimum fuel economy standards for 
tires. These standards would establish the maximum technically feasible 
and cost-effective fuel savings without adversely affecting tire safety 
or average tire life.
  Heavy-duty vehicles move our economy. This legislation would keep 
them on the move while helping to reduce both fuel consumption and 
emissions.

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It would require DOT to develop a testing and assessment program to 
determine what is feasible to improve the efficiency of heavy vehicles, 
and then to develop the appropriate fuel-economy standards. It also 
would provide a tax credit of up to $3,500 for the purchase of idling 
reduction technology for heavy vehicles.
  In order for the Federal Government to lead by example, this 
legislation would require the Secretary of Energy to issue regulations 
for federal fleets covered by the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to reduce 
petroleum consumption by 30 percent from a 1999 baseline by 2016.
  Title II of my legislation focuses on increasing our energy 
independence and reducing our emissions from the transportation sector 
through the use of alternative fuels.
  Renewable fuels offer great potential to help us achieve greater 
energy independence. This legislation would help us realize that 
potential by establishing a clean, renewable fuels performance 
standard. The performance standard would require fuel providers to 
increase the volume of clean, low-carbon, renewable fuels by up to 35 
billion gallons by 2025, unless EPA finds that the increase is 
technically infeasible or is likely to result in adverse impacts.
  This legislation would expand existing tax credits for ethanol to 
include cellulosic biomass. While there has been a great deal of focus 
on using corn-based ethanol in order to decrease our reliance upon 
foreign oil, there are other renewable, plant-based energy sources that 
are more environmentally friendly and have greater potential to reduce 
greenhouse gas emissions.
  Researchers at the University of Maine have been at the forefront of 
applying a research technique known as ``Life Cycle Analysis.'' Life 
Cycle Analysis is a unique interdisciplinary research tool that 
analyzes the energy requirements and environmental footprint involved 
with the manufacture, use, and disposal of a material. This technique 
is ideal for identifying fuels which have the lowest environmental 
impact and the greatest potential for reducing greenhouse gas 
emissions, while reducing our dependence on foreign oil.
  My legislation would authorize $275 million over five years for 
research that would use Life Cycle Analysis in order to identify and 
develop new biotechnologies. These technologies will help move our 
petroleum-based economy toward a renewable, sustainable forest bio-
economy.
  Environmental stewardship must go beyond the tailpipes of our 
vehicles to the smokestacks of our power plants. Title III of my 
legislation builds upon the Clean Power Act that I introduced in the 
last Congress with Senators Jeffords and Lieberman. I have, however, 
modified this provision to provide assistance to small businesses 
struggling with high electricity costs. I have also included increased 
funding for important conservation programs such as Forest Legacy, in 
order to help wildlife adapt to the impacts of climate change.
  This legislation would cut all four major power plant pollutants over 
the next six years. Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, which cause 
smog, acid rain, and asthma attacks, would be cut by 75 percent. Toxic 
mercury emissions would be cut by 90 percent from 1999 levels, and 
carbon dioxide, which forms the heat-trapping blanket that contributes 
to global warming, would be cut to 1990 levels.
  These reductions would do more than provide long-term protection for 
our environment; they also would produce dramatic and immediate health 
gains for our people. According to the EPA, quick and decisive cuts in 
nitrogen and sulfur emissions from power plants would save 18,700 lives 
every year, avoid 366,000 asthma attacks, and prevent $100 billion in 
health care costs. In addition, these cuts would combat the acid rain 
that is spoiling some of our Nation's most treasured parks and 
wilderness areas.
  The Centers for Disease Control has concluded that 4.9 million women 
of childbearing age have elevated levels of mercury, and that 322,000 
newborns are at risk of neurological damage from mercury exposure. This 
provision preserves our national commitment to reduce toxic threats to 
pregnant women and to children by requiring meaningful reductions and 
by prohibiting trading.
  The Clean Power Act incorporated into this legislation closes the 
grandfather loophole that exempts dirty, aging power plants from 
cleanup. Every power plant will be required to meet the most modern 
pollution control standards by either the plant's 40th year of 
operation or by the fifth year of the enactment of this legislation.
  The Clean Power Act uses market mechanisms, such as buying and 
selling pollution allowances known as ``emissions trading.'' As I have 
already stated, under my bill, this trading will not be allowed for 
toxic mercury. Nor will it be allowed if it enables a power plant to 
pollute at a level that damages public health or the environment.
  Power plants are the largest source of our Nation's contribution to 
global warming; as I stated earlier, they account for some 40 percent 
of our carbon dioxide emissions. This legislation would return carbon 
dioxide emissions to 1990 levels. By providing electricity producers 
with regulatory certainty now about future pollution-reduction 
requirements, this legislation would allow smarter investments and more 
cost-efficient planning.
  As with existing motor vehicles, we must make more efficient use of 
the energy we now produce to heat our homes and power our lights. This 
legislation would double funding for the Department of Energy 
Weatherization Program, reaching $1.4 billion for 2008. It also would 
provide predictable funding for the valuable Energy Star Program, which 
helps consumers buy energy efficient appliances, and would extend the 
renewable electricity tax credit through 2011 and the residential 
investment tax credit for solar and energy efficient buildings through 
2012.
  This legislation also includes an Energy Efficiency Performance 
Standard for utilities. This provision requires utilities to achieve 
energy efficiency improvements. This provision would help consumers 
save on their electricity bills. By way of example, in California, 
where a similar provision was employed, utilities achieved energy 
savings at a cost of around 2-4 cents per kilowatt hour. According to 
the Alliance to Save Energy, an Energy Efficiency Performance Standard 
could save consumers $64 billion in net savings, and avoid the need to 
build 400 power plants, preventing 320 million metric tons of carbon 
dioxide emissions.
  In addition, my legislation includes a renewable portfolio standard 
which would require utilities to generate 20 percent of their 
electricity from environmentally sound renewable energy sources by the 
year 2020. For example, biomass electricity generated under this 
provision must be done using sustainable forest practices.
  This legislation will help Americans save on utility bills, and make 
our tax code fairer, too. Title V would eliminate two major tax credits 
that benefit large oil and gas companies: tax credits for intangible 
drilling costs and for excess percentage over cost depletions. This 
would save the taxpayers billions of dollars over the next five years.
  This legislation also would help us better understand and assess 
climate change. During the last three years, I have had the opportunity 
to meet in the field with some of the world's foremost climate 
scientists. I have traveled to Ny-Alesund, Norway, the northernmost 
community in the world, where I saw the dramatic loss of sea-ice cover 
and the retreating Arctic glaciers. I have seen the same alarming 
changes in Alaska. Just a year ago, I went to the other end of the 
world and met with researchers--including a team from the University of 
Maine's outstanding Climate Change Institute--in Antarctica. These 
regions are the canary in the coal mine, and the changes taking place 
provide a warning we cannot ignore.
  Nor can we forestall taking action by arguing over the precise extent 
of climate change and the human contribution to it. The answer to 
scientific uncertainty is additional research. Title VI of my 
legislation would authorize $60 million for abrupt climate change 
research. Studies suggest that the climate can change dramatically 
within a very short period of time. An abrupt climate change triggered 
by the ongoing buildup of greenhouse gases could cause catastrophic 
droughts and floods.

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Understanding and predicting climate change are enormous scientific 
challenges. A great deal more scientific research is necessary in order 
to better understand the potential risk of abrupt climate change, and 
this legislation would provide the resources that are so urgently 
required.
  There are few issues of greater concern to my constituents in my home 
state of Maine than our nation's ongoing and escalating reliance on 
foreign oil, and the damage our vehicle and power plant emissions are 
doing to the environment. They bear the brunt of wildly fluctuating and 
steadily increasing energy prices. They know the harm this dependence 
causes to our national security, and they know the harm our current 
energy usage causes to the air they breathe. And although a bone-
chilling, winter nor'easter may bring a new round of jokes about the 
possible benefits of global warming, they know that human-caused 
climate change is no laughing matter. They know we must be better 
stewards of our planet.
  I believe that all Americans--whether they live in the sunny south or 
a winter wonderland--share these concerns. They have heard enough talk; 
they want us to act. Americans deserve to breathe clean air, pay 
reasonable gasoline and electricity prices, live in a world with a 
stable climate future, and have the peace of mind that comes with 
secure energy supplies. The Energy Independence, Clean Air, and Climate 
Security Act offers a comprehensive, integrated approach to these 
issues.
  In conclusion, let me describe the six titles very briefly.
  The first title of my bill would increase energy independence and 
reduce greenhouse gas emissions by improving the efficiency of our 
transportation sector. The second title would accomplish similar goals 
by replacing some gasoline with alternative fuels. The third title 
would reduce emissions of mercury, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and 
nitrogen oxides from powerplants. The fourth title would help to reduce 
heat and electricity bills and diversify our electricity supply through 
a combination of energy efficiency and renewable energy provisions. The 
fifth title would help save taxpayers money through the elimination of 
certain tax breaks for the oil industry. Finally, the sixth title would 
authorize $60 million for abrupt climate change research to help us 
better understand this phenomenon.
  I am particularly excited about renewable fuels. I think there is a 
lot we could do to expand the tax break for ethanol to include 
cellulosic biomass. There is very exciting research being done at the 
University of Maine which has been in the forefront of applying a 
research technique known as ``Life Cycle Analysis,'' which is a tool 
that analyzes the energy requirements and environmental footprint 
involved in the manufacture, use, and disposal of a material. It is 
ideal for identifying fuels which have the lowest environmental impact 
and the greatest potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions while 
reducing our dependence on foreign oil. This technology will help us 
move our petroleum-based economy toward a renewable, sustainable, 
forest bioeconomy.
  This is a complex bill. I appreciate the indulgence of my colleagues.
                                 ______