legislation: an overview

the major players, both nationally and statewide

H.R. 2454 & s. 1733

House bill sponsored by: Rep. Henry Waxman (Calif.) and Edward Markey (Mass.). Also known as ACES (American Clean Energy and Security Act)

Senate bill sponsored by: Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.) Also known as Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act.

Nuts and bolts: Passed by the House of Representatives in June 2009, ACES is the first legislation approved in either house of Congress concerning climate change. ACES goal is to “create clean energy jobs, achieve energy independence, reduce global warming pollution and transition to a clean energy economy.” The bill would create a cap and trade system in the United States for greenhouses gases, most notably carbon. It also includes a federal renewable electricity standard for power retailers. This standard requires each major electricity provider to produce 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources.

Criticisms: The cap and trade system is not perfect, and there are concerns about carbon offsets potentially negating the cap put on pollutants. Additionally, the current version of the bill allocates 85 percent of the allowances out for free. There is also criticism that neither hydropower nor nuclear count as a renewable source of energy although both are zero-emission sources.

Florida House ties: Kathy Castor (D-FL) offered an amendment giving states the ability to adopt feed-in tariffs for renewable energy as defined in the bill; this amendment was accepted. Cliff Stearns (R-FL) offered an amendment to remove existing nuclear power from the baseline of the Renewable Electricity Standard. This amendment would have potentially reduced the overall implementation of renewable energy under this act by about 20 percent, the amount of nuclear electricity generation in the United States; it was defeated.

To watch this bill and its movement through the House and Senate, click here.

Florida Climate Protection Act

Also called: Florida Statutes 403.44

Nuts and bolts: Florida became the first state in the Southeast to pass carbon cap-and-trade legislation, joining more than 20 states that have imposed similar rules meant to combat the greenhouse gases believed to cause global warming. This bill writes into law the lowering of greenhouse gas emissions and creates a greenhouse gas cap-and-trade program. The bill also includes lots of giveaways to utility companies, making it easier for them to speed eminent domain and run transmission lines through state land. It also eases regulatory oversight of power plant sites.

Compiled by Jen Hiatt, University of South Florida