Hill Heat

During the 110th Congress, the Committee on Ways and Means began a series of hearings on climate change. In the first hearing, the Committee heard testimony that human greenhouse gas emissions are having an adverse impact on our planet’s climate. In the second hearing, the Committee heard testimony from numerous witnesses recommending that Congress implement revenue measures (e.g., auction-based cap-and-trade proposals or carbon taxes) that would reduce human greenhouse gas emissions. In connection with the development of these revenue measures, witnesses at this hearing also encouraged the Committee to (1) promote a comprehensive global effort to address climate change and to ensure a level regulatory playing field for U.S. manufacturers, (2) mitigate higher energy costs borne by consumers, (3) maximize the impact that climate change legislation will have on growing the U.S. economy, and (4) maintain the competitiveness of U.S. businesses, farmers and workers.

During the 111th Congress, the Committee continued this series of hearings by holding a hearing on the scientific objectives of climate change legislation. This hearing provided a discussion of the goals that climate change legislation should seek to achieve from a scientific perspective over both the short term and the long term. Furthermore, the Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support held a hearing on protecting low- and moderate-income families while curbing global warming, and the Subcommittee on Trade has announced a hearing on the trade aspects of climate change legislation.

In announcing this hearing, Chairman Rangel said, “As we develop climate change legislation, we must ensure that the program is structured to achieve specific environmental goals at the lowest possible cost to the economy and consumers.”

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

The hearing will focus on a discussion of the ways that climate change legislation can be designed to reduce or eliminate price volatility while still achieving specific science-based environmental objectives.

• Dr. Jaiwon Shin, Associate Administrator, Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, NASA
• Dr. Lourdes Maurice, Environmental Lead, Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI)
• Holden Shannon, Senior Vice President, Global Real Estate and Security, Continental Airlines
• Dr. Alan H. Epstein, Vice President, Technology and Environment, Pratt & Whitney, United Technologies Corporation
• Bill Glover, Managing Director, Environmental Strategy, The Boeing Company

Restoring America’s Manufacturing Leadership through Energy Efficiency Act of 2009

The United States faces long-term energy, climate, and competitiveness challenges that go far beyond the economic hurdles that we are facing today. Our global competitors are gaining in productivity and capturing high-value manufacturing capabilities and products that were invented in the U.S. With the convergence of these challenges, we have reached a turning point in our industrial history – to use these challenges as an opportunity for the renewal and transformation of U.S. industry and manufacturing to compete globally through sheer technical prowess and product value superiority, reducing our dependence on carbon-based fuels, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and increasing productivity. This legislation takes the first steps in achieving this transformation by focusing on providing financing mechanisms for manufacturers to implement cost-competitive, energy efficient equipment and processes, as well as by establishing public/private partnerships with industry to map out where advanced American manufacturing is headed and to develop and deploy the breakthrough processes and technologies that will take us there.

• Establishes DOE grants to community lender/state partnerships to establish regional revolving loan programs for manufacturers.
• Links DOE’s energy assessments to SBA Loans

• Establishes partnerships between the Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) and other Federal applied technology programs to engage in early stage manufacturing technology development.
• Directs DOE to benchmark our domestic industry by assessing the cost, energy and ghg emissions savings potential of commercially available, but not widely implemented industrial technologies.
• Develops with industry, technology roadmaps to map out how to achieve decreased energy intensity and emissions, while increasing competitiveness.
• Expands the regionally based Industrial Assessment Centers to reach more small and medium-sized manufacturers and train the industrial engineers of tomorrow.
• Establishes Industrial Innovation Grants to encourage and reward innovation in industrial processes and technologies.

• Establishes a joint industry-government manufacturing partnerships to shift our industry towards utilizing advanced, sustainable manufacturing technologies and processes to compete in a low-carbon global economy.
• Directs the National Academies of Science to evaluate the critical manufacturing capabilities and supply chain components needed to capture the development and production of advanced energy technologies in the U.S.

Full text of S. 661

The draft bill would have the Energy Information Administration – DOE’s statistical arm – incorporate activities in the energy commodity futures market under its purview for the first time. Under the bill, if an entity owns energy futures contracts or swaps over a level to be determined by the Energy secretary, EIA would assess the amount of physical product and storage the company owns and the quantity of contracts it is buying and selling.

EIA would also collect company data identifying the ownership of all commercial inventories of oil and natural gas, the volumes of the product, and the storage and transportation capacity.

Witnesses

• Ray LaHood, Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation

• Edward G. Rendell, Governor of Pennsylvania
• Kathleen M. Novak, President, National League of Cities, Mayor of Northglenn, Colorado

In light of recent revelations by federal investigators that thousands of millionaire landowners have wrongfully collected farm program payments in recent years, committee members want to find out if some of those inappropriate payments are going out in conservation contracts.

The hearing will also unveil a new congressional investigation into contracts for the Wetlands Reserve Program and Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program. A committee investigator looked into whether wealthy landowners who exceed the program’s income limits are receiving payments and found that USDA has poor record-keeping and oversight of the payments, according to a committee aide.

• Scott Borgerson, Ph.D., Visiting Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
• Robert Corell, Ph.D., Vice-President of Programs, The Heinz Center
• Mead Treadwell, Senior Fellow, Institute of the North

Join us to learn about the technologies, practices, and processes that will be instrumental to infrastructure and economic renewal.

Featured Keynote: Kathleen Hogan, Director of Climate Protection, Partnerships Division U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Kathleen Hogan, Director of the Climate Protection Partnerships Division at the U.S. EPA, will discuss the very significant contribution and role of buildings with respect to carbon reduction, and the opportunities for building energy efficiency to be a vital element of a carbon solution. Furthermore, given increasing interest in building performance as part of a new wave of policies and programs, Kathleen will also discuss the EPA’s leading role in building performance initiatives, including programs such as ENERGY STAR and Climate Leaders.

Conference Web Site

The Westin Arlington Gateway
801 North Glebe Road
Arlington, Virginia 22203

• Thomas L. Strickland, Nominated to be Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, Department of the Interior