HARMAN EXPRESSES LUKEWARM SUPPORT FOR ACES ACT

Says “many troubling changes and compromises were made”

Washington, D.C. -- Congresswoman Jane Harman (D-CA), a senior member of the Energy & Commerce Committee, issued the following statement on the American Clean Energy & Security Act of 2009:

Let me be crystal clear:  the bill we are voting on today – and which I will support – falls far short of what could and must be achieved if we are to get our arms around greenhouse gas emissions, promote green jobs and innovation, and demonstrate leadership to the rest of the world. 

My Committee colleagues Chairman Henry Waxman and Subcommittee Chair Ed Markey have worked tirelessly to craft legislation that makes progress on climate change goals and creates a system to cap and trade carbon emissions. 

And believe me, as a mother of four, I understand that perfection is not an option.  But in assembling a bill that will garner enough votes to pass, many troubling changes and compromises were made.

I am particularly disappointed that a bipartisan provision on which I labored to boost outdoor lighting efficiency by 25% by 2010 was gutted in the course of trading for votes.  Not only would this provision have cut the country’s annual electricity bill by $1 billion, the changes made to it pose serious preemption challenges to bellwether states like California, which are consistently on the cutting-edge of environmental policy.

Trolling for votes also resulted in the dilution of an extremely important provision on green buildings and a weakened renewable fuels standard.

While passing the American Clean Energy & Security Act of 2009 is better than doing nothing, I consider this bill nothing more than a first step.

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