Maine's Susan Collins Proposes Cap and Trade Alternative

With delegates from around the world meeting in Copenhagen to figure out a new framework that could combat global warming, the debate about what to do to cap emissions in America has heated up in Congress.

Susan Collins, a Republican Senator from Maine, has proposed an alternative to the leading forms of cap and trade legislation on the Hill, along with Maria Cantwell, a Democratic Senator from Washington.

Reports CQ Politics:

According to CQ's report, Collins is concerned that carbon speculators could cause another financial crisis.

On Sunday, Collins also announced the Collins-Lieberman “Energy Independence, Clean Air and Climate Security Act.” The full release from the Senator's office has been republished below:

SENATOR SUSAN COLLINS INTRODUCES COMPREHENSIVE ENERGY CONSERVATION, CLIMATE CHANGE LEGISLATION
Senate to Consider Energy Legislation as Early as Next Week

June 6, 2007

Washington, DC -

Senator Susan Collins was joined today by Senator Joe Lieberman in introducing legislation that represents one of the most comprehensive approaches ever to address our nation’s energy conservation issues, while working to protect our environment. The Collins-Lieberman “Energy Independence, Clean Air and Climate Security Act,” would provide an integrated approach to reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil, clean our air, and address climate change, all of which affect each other. The bill also helps protect American jobs by not providing a competitive edge to high-energy consuming nations like China. The Senate is slated to consider energy legislation as early as next week.

In a speech to the U.S. Senate, Senator Collins said, “This legislation takes an integrated approach that is much needed and long overdue if we are to address the inseparable issues that are crucial to our nation’s economy, security, and to the health of our people and planet.”

Senator Collins further said, “The choice is not between hobbling our nation’s economy and protecting our environment. This legislation is based upon the principle that the 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 aggravates the other. The integrated approach in this legislation will help us break through that impasse.”

Specifically, the Collins-Lieberman legislation aims to cut carbon dioxide emissions by implementing new standards for the transportation and electricity sectors of the economy, which together account for 73 percent of greenhouse gas emissions. It would enable the U.S. to reduce its dependence on foreign oil while also addressing climate change; it would reduce power plant emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020; it would immediately implement CAFÉ standards for automobiles; and the standards set forth in the bill would apply to all products sold in the U.S. regardless of where they are manufactured, thereby protecting American jobs by not providing competitive advantages to other nations.

Senator Collins explained that the legislation incorporates key provisions of other important legislation before the Senate, such as other CAFÉ standards bills, the Clean Power Act, and the Advanced Clean Fuels Act, all of which Senator Collins has cosponsored.

“Americans deserve to breathe clean air; pay reasonable gas and electric prices, live in a world with a stable climate future, and have the peace of mind that comes with secure energy supplies. The Collins-Lieberman Energy Independence, Clean Air, and Climate Security Act offers a comprehensive, integrated approach to these issues.”

A summary of the major provisions of the legislation is as follows: