WASHINGTON, DC — Today Rep. Henry A. Waxman, Rep. Edward J. Markey, Rep. Mike Doyle, and Rep. Jay Inslee released the details of an agreement on a major provision for the allocation of allowances to major energy-intensive, trade-exposed industries under the proposed terms of the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009.
Under this agreement, energy-intensive industries that compete in global markets will be provided incentives to improve their energy efficiency, as well as assistance to address the costs of transitioning to a clean energy economy. These incentives will be based on the amount of domestic production. Under the agreement:
· 15% of allowances in 2014 will be distributed to U.S. manufacturers that are in energy-intensive, trade-exposed industries.
· Manufacturers will receive allowances based on the average carbon emissions from the sector, scaled by the manufacturer’s U.S. production.
· To provide adequate transition time, the industries will receive allowances through 2025, at which time the President will determine whether they are still needed.
“We’ve worked hard to develop legislation that will dramatically reduce CO2 emissions while preserving energy-intensive U.S. manufacturing jobs and protecting consumers from substantially higher electric bills — and I believe that the agreement we’ve reached will do just that,” said Rep. Doyle. “I want to thank Chairman Waxman and Chairman Markey for working so hard to address the concerns raised by other members of the Committee.”
“Rep. Doyle and I introduced the Inslee-Doyle provisions to accommodate concerns that industry and working families have raised,” said Rep. Inslee. “This agreement will allow energy-intensive American industries like Alcoa, Weyerhaeuser, and Nucor Steel in Washington State to fairly compete and protect jobs while reducing our national emissions. I’m proud to work with this dynamic and committed group of members to help reach agreement on this issue.”
“I want to thank Mike Doyle and Jay Inslee for their outstanding leadership on this issue, which is so important to our industrial heartland. This is good for jobs, good for investment, and good for the environment,” said Rep. Waxman, Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee. “We are establishing strong protections to ensure America’s industrial capacity can thrive without being disadvantaged by overseas competition.”
“We have reached an important milestone as we build consensus on comprehensive clean energy legislation,” said Rep. Markey, Chairman of the Energy and Environment Subcommittee. “This improvement to the legislation will help America create millions of new good-paying clean energy jobs, and do so without losing the quality manufacturing jobs we already have. I commend Rep. Doyle, Rep. Inslee, and Chairman Waxman for all of their hard work.”
