U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., today said cooler heads need to prevail in the Senate to ensure Americans aren't stuck with the detrimental consequences of a cap-and-tax program that would create burdensome greenhouse gas emission regulations.
"The House hastily passed this bill along party lines and now the Senate has a chance to inject some reality back into the process and actually examine what the House bill would do. There was more bipartisan opposition in the House than bipartisan support. Cooler heads must prevail. The more Americans learn about this bill and do the math, they see that it is nothing more than a national energy tax in sheep's clothing," said Enzi.
The Senate Finance Committee, on which Enzi sits, held a hearing on climate change legislation today with witnesses testifying about the allowance and revenue distribution that comes with cap-and-tax legislation. Enzi is concerned that the cap-and-tax program will tax energy use for every American, every small business and every industry.
"The answer to our energy problems won't be found through imposing hidden taxes. We need research funding to help develop and deploy clean coal technologies, carbon sequestration and alternative energy. We also need to produce more energy domestically. Hampering businesses with a confusing scheme that will put the cost burden directly on the backs of consumers is not the answer," said Enzi.
The House passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, H.R. 2454, by a vote of 219-212 on June 26 and the bill is now awaiting consideration by the Senate. This cap-and-tax bill intends to charge businesses more for the emissions they produce. Though the intent is to curb carbon emissions linked to climate change, the bill will ultimately produce a financial scheme that hurts hardworking consumers, according to Enzi.
Source: http://enzi.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=NewsRoom.NewsReleases&ContentRecord_id=e63753a2-802a-23ad-412d-29afe834173a&Region_id=&Issue_id=
