Congress Agenda

Democrats, unions back competing candidates for EPA Region 5 chief

Most of Illinois’ Democratic lawmakers in the House are supporting state water Commissioner Debra Shore to be the administrator of EPA’s Region 5 covering several Midwest states, at odds with a major agency union that is endorsing a former EPA official and current gas utility executive Micah Ragland for the position. Region 5 serves Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin and 35 tribes, and whoever President-elect Joe Biden selects as regional administrator does not have to win Senate confirmation. Shore,...

New House Rules Could Ease Passage Of Climate-Related Spending

House rules for the new Congress give lawmakers new discretion to ease self-imposed spending restrictions to address climate change, potentially opening the door to more ambitious climate-related initiatives even as questions loom about whether such investments can be enacted by a divided Capitol Hill. The more flexible spending language is included in a broader rules package approved Jan. 4, that also separately reauthorizes a select House panel to address the climate crisis, according to the text and a related summary...

Override Of Trump’s Defense Bill Veto Gives Biden New Climate Tools

The Republican-controlled Senate’s decision to override President Donald Trump’s veto of the annual defense policy bill hands the incoming Biden administration new tools for measuring and limiting greenhouse gas emissions as part of its ambitious approach to combating climate change. The Senate in an 81-13 vote on Jan. 1 enacted the fiscal year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), following a similar overwhelmingly bipartisan veto override vote by the House on Dec. 28. The override -- the first of a...

Nuclear Provisions Of Omnibus Deal Leave Room For Renewed Fights

The sweeping bipartisan omnibus spending bill approved by Congress this week includes provisions promoting advanced nuclear reactors while leaving the door open for a renewed fight among Democrats next year on additional measures for expanded nuclear power as a climate change solution. The $2.3 trillion package approved Dec. 21 contains a $1.4 trillion fiscal year 2021 omnibus spending bill and $900 billion for coronavirus relief, as well as a range of authorizing provisions including a Title II on nuclear energy...

Trump Vetoes Defense Policy Bill With Key Climate, Toxics Provisions

President Donald Trump has vetoed the fiscal year 2021 defense authorization bill that includes several environment provisions concerning the Defense Department’s (DOD) cleanup of toxic substances and climate change adaptation. Trump in his Dec. 23 veto message reiterated a series of criticisms of the bill, including that it fails to limit liability protections for social media companies and forces DOD to remove the names of former Confederate leaders from military installations. He argues social media’s current liability shield “facilitates the...

Omnibus Deal Offers Biden Initial Climate Wins But Omits Broad Authority

The broad year-end spending and policy deal Congress approved this week includes provisions that Democrats say are significant advances in cutting carbon emissions and promoting clean energy, though it falls short of comprehensive climate mitigation authority that may remain elusive for the incoming Biden administration. The status of the omnibus bill, however, has been thrown into doubt by President Donald Trump’s Dec. 22 criticism of the coronavirus relief payments in the massive legislative package, hinting at a possible veto. Congress...

Trump threatens to upend FY21 omnibus deal

President Donald Trump is hinting that he might not sign the sprawling year-end fiscal year 2021 appropriations bill with a slight funding boost for EPA, as well as a major coronavirus relief package and multiple policy provisions including several climate- and energy-related measures. In a video released late Dec. 22 , Trump urged Congress to increase the “ridiculously low” $600 stimulus checks in the coronavirus relief portion of the package to $2,000 per person and outlined a list of provisions...

Ewire: McConnell vows votes on Biden’s Cabinet but hurdles increase

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is pledging to schedule floor votes for President-elect Joe Biden’s Cabinet nominees if Republicans maintain control of the Senate next year, although some GOP senators are creating hurdles for the selections by expressing early opposition to some of Biden’s environment picks. The nominees “aren’t all going to pass on a voice vote, and they aren’t all going to make it, but I will put them on the floor,” said McConnell, according to a column...

Final FY21 Spending Deal Includes Boost For Numerous EPA Programs

Lawmakers are releasing a final fiscal year 2021 spending deal that would provide EPA with an almost 2 percent funding boost above current levels, while retaining several policy riders from prior years but not an array of new restrictions that House Democrats had proposed. The appropriations deal, unveiled Dec. 21 , is part of a broader end-of-year agreement that also includes numerous authorizations for EPA and other federal agencies -- including an EPA-implemented phase down of the potent greenhouse gas...

GOP senator vows ‘brawl’ over Biden’s environment nominees

One Republican energy-state senator is promising a “bit of a brawl” over the confirmation of President-elect Joe Biden’s environment nominees, criticizing several prior decisions by EPA Administrator-designate Michael Regan and Interior Secretary-designate Deb Haaland. “We will be in a bit of a brawl,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) during a Dec. 18 appearance on Fox Business . “We’re going to have to stand our ground and fight the fight.” Cramer raised questions about Regan, citing his rejection of a proposed...

Congress Poised To Enact Broad EPA Program Establishing HFC Limits

Capitol Hill lawmakers are unveiling a long-awaited deal directing EPA to sharply curtail the production and use of potent greenhouse gases known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFC), with final enactment of the measure virtually assured given that it is part of a broader year-end spending deal between the GOP and Democrats. The agreement released Dec. 21 would end the years-long delay of action on HFCs by the Trump EPA, and potentially allow the incoming Biden administration to accelerate action on the climate...

Report says carbon tax more cost-effective than GHG rules

A consulting firm in a new report says the carbon tax plan offered by the Climate Leadership Council (CLC), whose members include Treasury Secretary-designate Janet Yellen, is a more cost-effective approach to achieve major greenhouse gas cuts than regulations imposed by EPA or other agencies. Specifically, the report by NERA Economic Consulting, commissioned by CLC, examines the group’s legislative proposal for a carbon dividends plan (CDP), compared with various regulatory options offered as alternatives to carbon pricing programs. It finds...

Pelosi renews House select climate change panel

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) will re-establish the select committee on climate change for the next Congress, suggesting the panel will focus on enacting “solutions” with the incoming Biden administration after having spent that past two years offering “sweeping” proposals that fell on deaf ears with President Donald Trump. “Over the past two years, our Select Committee on the Climate Crisis brought together a historic coalition of scientists, union leaders, faith advocates, farmers, tribal leaders, business leaders and environmental justice...

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