[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 15367]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     INTRODUCTION OF THE GREENHOUSE GAS ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2007

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                          HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 11, 2007

  Mr. ENGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to announce the introduction 
of the Greenhouse Gas Accountability Act of 2007. This legislation can 
serve as an essential first step in a comprehensive policy to combat 
climate change.
  When constructing a comprehensive, economy-wide global warming 
policy, what is the first thing we have to know? It is what we are 
currently emitting, who is emitting it, and data on where in the 
economy it makes sense to regulate. The biggest mistake the EU made in 
creating its cap and trade system was distributing credits without 
having a good idea of its emissions first. This resulted in power 
companies being given more credits they needed. In turn these power 
companies were able to sell their excess credits and gain a windfall 
rather than being forced to reduce emissions.
  This comprehensive registry will give us all the data we need to 
craft future legislation and intelligently decide how to allocate 
credits. I am not suggesting that this legislation act as a substitute 
to a cap and trade program, however. Speaker Pelosi, Chairman Dingell 
and Chairman Boucher have all pledged to bring a comprehensive cap and 
trade bill to the House floor by the end of this year. I applaud these 
efforts and that is why I am a cosponsor of two of the most prominent 
cap and trade bills in the House today. At the very least I hope the 
Greenhouse Gas Accountability Act can become an amendment to one of 
these worthy cap and trade proposals.
  Not only will this bill lay the groundwork for future legislation on 
climate change, but the bill will serve other important functions as 
well. For instance, by requiring greenhouse gas reports by entity and 
by facility investors will be able accurately assess the risks and 
opportunities of various companies. Currently all investors know that 
carbon regulation is coming. But despite heroic efforts by the Carbon 
Disclosure Project, many companies still do not disclose their carbon 
emissions to their investors. This bill will require all large publicly 
traded companies to finally let their investors know what they are 
doing about the climate.
  Further, the public will be able to hold companies accountable for 
their actions to address global warming. Just as we saw with the 
successful Toxics Release Inventory program, many companies will see 
the light once they truly become aware of their own impacts. This 
increased awareness will almost assuredly lead to reduced emissions.
  Perhaps the most important aspect of the legislation is that it would 
require international companies who trade on American stock exchanges 
to report their emissions abroad as well. No longer will we be in the 
dark about how foreign operations in developing countries are adding to 
the world's accumulation of greenhouse gases. This means that we could 
finally have a window into what the true emissions of greenhouse gases 
are in countries that are rapidly developing such as India and China. 
The disclosures would also provide a strong disincentive for 
multinationals to relocate facilities abroad just to avoid disclosure 
or future regulation.
  Madam Speaker, in closing I would like to say that we need to 
accomplish something this Congress to get us on the path toward 
mandatory emissions cuts. I truly hope that we enact a strong cap and 
trade bill, but unfortunately the President has made quite clear that 
he will veto any efforts to enact such legislation. If the President 
insists on such an unwise decision I hope that at the very least he 
would consider backing the Greenhouse Gas Accountability Act. Global 
warming is simply too important for us to play politics with this 
issue.

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