Wednesday, March 16, 2011

GOOD NEWS



Republicans Move to Stop Cap and Trade Regulations
The House and Senate Republicans both moved forward on Tuesday to stop the (EPA) from regulating greenhouse emissions. The Obama administration has started implementing new regulations which tax businesses and raise gas prices for consumers to pursue its climate change agenda.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee passed the Energy Tax Prevention Act (H.R. 910) on Tuesday by a vote of 34-19. Three Democrats on the committee supported the bill: Jim Matheson (Utah), John Barrow (Ga.) and Mike Ross (Ark.).

“The Energy Tax Prevention Act is about gas prices, and stopping the EPA from driving them even higher,” committee Chairman Fred Upton (R.-Mich.) told HUMAN EVENTS exclusively after the vote.

“This legislation is about our economy, and stopping the EPA from imposing the tremendous cost of runaway regulations. And this legislation is about protecting American workers, and stopping the EPA from shipping our jobs overseas,” said Upton.

Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R.-Va.) said the EPA bill will be voted on by the full House before the Easter recess.  n the Senate, Mitch McConnell introduced the identical bill as an amendment to the small business bill, which was debated on Tuesday.

In June 2009, the House Democrats passed cap-and-trade (or “cap-and-tax”) by seven votes, but the bill died in the Senate. But in December, when the Republicans were about to take control of the House, the Obama administration instituted new EPA regulations to put cap and trade policies into effect.

The EPA used the Clean Air Act as a vehicle for the regulations which impose a tax in the form of carbon emissions to businesses to regulate their greenhouse gasses. Inhofe predicted that, without this legislation, the EPA’s cap-and-trade regulations would increase taxes from $300 to $400 billion a year.

The House’s Energy Tax Prevention Act stops the EPA from using the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gases and impose the taxes, in both current regulations and future efforts. The bill, in essence, prohibits the Obama administration from enacting cap-and-trade policies through regulations, after failing to do so through legislation.

After the Upton bill passes the full House, Republicans will link it together to the Senate amendment as the Inhofe/Upton bill.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D.-N.V.) said on Tuesday that the amendment will have a vote “in due time,” although he does not support it. The Senate is expected to vote on it either this week or after next week’s recess.

“It’s my hope that we’ll vote to stop this power grab in its tracks,” said McConnell.

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