July Means Game Time in the Senate

Policymakers return to Washington this week, refreshed after the Independence Day Recess and with only four weeks to move the ball on comprehensive energy legislation. With the World Cup now behind them, it’s time for policymakers to score some goals of their own. Here’s the game plan:

The Senate Count Down

The next month before the August Recess marks the last critical moments for Congress to advance a number of legislative goals before the election season heats up in September. With fewer than 20 working days left, the Senate will need to sprint to get through Elena Kagan’s Supreme Court confirmation, tax and appropriations bills, and financial reform legislation to reach comprehensive energy legislation before time runs out. In the lifetime of the 111th Congress, July is the last five minutes on the clock.

The Energy Bill Line-Up

Senate leadership looks committed to move energy legislation after a pep talk with President Obama on June 29 and a Democratic huddle the week before. Champions are aiming for several policy goals: a Gulf spill response, clean energy deployment, and possibly reducing global warming pollution. While the Senate hasn't unveiled its final formation yet, the bill is likely to draw on the strengths of several key players:

• The American Clean Energy Leadership Act (H.R. 1462): The energy-only bill won bipartisan support in the Senate Energy Committee last year and contains important energy efficiency provisions including building codes, appliance standards, research and development and building retrofit programs. This bill could be combined with the American Power Act (below) to line up with its House counterpart, the American Clean Energy and Security Act. See a detailed comparison of the three bills (PDF).
• The Outer Continental Shelf Reform Act (S. 3516): The Gulf-spill response bill passed unanimously out of the Senate Energy Committee and would reform federal oversight of offshore drilling.
• Lugar’s Practical Energy and Climate Plan Act (S. 3464): A Republican answer to the energy debate, this proposal from Senator Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) would set a diverse energy standard for electric utilities, improve building codes and appliance standards, and improve fuel economy standards, among other provisions.
• An Energy Tax Package: This to-be-determined proposal could draw on earlier tax incentive proposals from Senators Jeff Bingaman and Olympia Snowe to promote energy efficiency and renewable in homes and businesses.
• A Utility-Only Cap: This compromise cap-and-trade proposal, fronted by Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M), would create a greenhouse gas reduction program from power plants, which manufacturers could enter voluntarily.
• The American Power Act: This long-awaited climate bill was introduced by Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) in May as a Senate companion to the House’s American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES). The bill includes additional provisions for nuclear, coal, and offshore drilling and gas. See a detailed comparison of the American Power Act, ACELA, and ACES (PDF).
• The CLEAR Act: This “cap-and-dividend” proposal was introduced by Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) as an alternative to the American Clean Energy and Security Act framework. The proposal's simplicity and large portion of revenues returned directly to consumers make it increasingly popular. In addition, the bill's Energy Efficiency Consumer Loan Program would allow consumers to finance energy efficiency improvements using the climate dividend.

In addition to these framework proposals, the Senate Democrats may draw from a number of other bills in their playbook: the e-Know Act (H.R. 4860) which would give homeowners more knowledge of their home energy use; the Supply Star Act(S. 3396) which would encourage businesses to invest in supply chain energy efficiency; the Streamlining Energy Efficiency for Schools Act (S. 3364) which would provide technical assistance to make schools more energy efficient; and the Home Star (S. 3434) and Building Star (S. 3079) proposals to support energy efficiency improvements in homes and businesses.

Scoring Goals for Energy

While clear favorites are emerging, it’s still too early to predict which bills, if any, will make it past the tough defense of the U.S. Senate.

From the Alliance perspective, any bill that puts a strong price on carbon, authorizes complementary energy efficiency policies and funds energy efficiency programs would be a win-win-win for American households in terms of saving money, saving energy and reducing carbon emissions. If no such bill can pass this Senate, however, an energy-only bill may be the last-minute play we need to get us into the next round.