Sens. John Kerry (D-MA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA)–chairs of the Foreign Relations Committee, and Environment and Public Works Committee respectively–have unveiled a draft of a climate change bill calling for significant reductions in U.S. carbon dioxide emissions in both the near and short term. The Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act.
Though the draft will change considerably over the coming weeks, it is the basis for the upper chamber’s coming legislative push, which, if successful, will, when combined with an already-completed House climate bill, become the most significant piece of energy legislation in the nation’s history.
But between now and then, it will meet the many machetes of the Senate–an institution that hasn’t been too kind to previous, failed climate change bills.
First, it will be changed a bit and then re-unveiled as a Chairman’s Mark next month, ahead of hearings to amend it in Boxer’s committee. That committee successfully passed a climate change bill, sponsored by Joe Lieberman and John Warner, in 2007, and with more Democrats and fewer Republicans this time around, it should pass.
But, as is common in the Senate, it won’t be a cakewalk. The ranking Democrat on the EPW Committee is Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) who, in his capacity as chairman of the much more conservative and rural Finance Committee, will likely get to take whack at the financing provisions of the bill.
Among those Finance Committee members are Sens. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Jeff Bingaman (D-NM)–respectively chairs of the Agriculture Committee and Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Those panels, too, could be able to amend the bill.
When that’s all done, and the whole thing’s stitched back together, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid can bring it to the floor. He’s suggested that this may not happen until next year, but whenever it happens, expect a punishing debate and votes on amendments, which will culminate in a filibuster. If it can muster 60 votes to overcome that, then it may be in the clear. Bloodied and battered, but alive. But that’s hardly a safe bet
On the bright side, James Inhofe will spend weeks and weeks saying more and more ridiculous things about it. So that should be fun.
