Issue Position: Cap and Trade

Issue Position

The President's budget included a provision that paves the way for the implementation of cap and trade. Cap and trade is a program that puts a fixed limit, or cap, on carbon emissions. While this sounds harmless, it is not. Quite the opposite, the program imposes a $629 billion "carbon tax" on industry, which will ultimately be passed along to the consumer in the form of increased energy bills.

Reducing our nation's carbon emissions to regulate climate change is important; however, I am concerned that this particular program could have a negative impact on Ohio families. Studies have shown the yearly cost could be as much as $3,100 per household. That adds up to more than what many families spend annually on groceries, clothes or property taxes.

Another of my concerns is that states, such as Ohio, that produce and use more carbon-based energy, such as coal, will be hit hardest. According to the Energy Information Administration, coal is responsible for 90 percent of Ohio's electricity generation. In addition, this program will further erode the job growth of the U.S. manufacturing sector where Ohio has a strong presence.

Alternative Plan: We can take comprehensive action to address climate change without impacting jobs and raising the costs on small businesses and families. This can be done by ramping up research into new technologies such as solar, wind, clean coal and nuclear energy that will reduce emissions. That is why House Republicans introduced the American Energy Act, legislation which will clean up the environment, reduce the cost of energy and generate more American jobs, all without raising the cost of energy for American families. This legislation would:

* Create a Renewable Energy Trust: The plan forms a renewable energy trust fund that would step up environmentally-safe energy production off shore and in remote areas of the West, and use the funds generated through this production to support innovation in renewable and alternative energy sources, such as wind and solar energy.
* Invest in Nuclear Energy: The legislation also establishes a national objective of licensing 100 new nuclear reactors over the next 20 years by restructuring an onerous regulatory process and ensuring the recycling and safe storage of spent nuclear fuel.

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