CATF strongly opposes federal legislation that would repeal climate and public health protections
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1, the Lower Energy Costs Act, which if signed into law, would repeal critical climate and clean energy policies and unnecessarily harm public health.
“The bill passed by the House today would move the United States further away from our climate and clean energy goals and undo progress we’ve made to protect the environment and public health,” says Evan Chapman, U.S. Federal Policy Director at Clean Air Task Force. “As the IPCC underscored in its recent report, we need to drastically, and rapidly, reduce our emissions. Unfortunately, this bill is a step in the wrong direction and would put our climate goals further from reach. Of particular concern, this bill would repeal the Methane Emissions Reduction Program, which incentivizes operators to reduce emissions and decrease waste, improving the air quality for the millions of Americans living near oil and gas sites. It would also dismantle the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, which was created to support rapid deployment of low- and zero-emissions technologies and make sure that all communities benefit from the transition to a zero-emissions economy.
“While we agree with the need to maintain energy reliability and the need to boost U.S. energy security and leadership, this bill is a step in the wrong direction,” Chapman continued. “We have the opportunity to lead the world in developing and deploying the technologies necessary to move us toward a zero-emissions future, and we must continue to build upon existing law that will help us achieve this goal. We look forward to working with Congress on policies to advance a suite of clean energy solutions that support energy affordability, improve air quality, drive economic growth, and boost American energy leadership.”
CATF, along with more than 30 concerned organizations, sent a letter to House leadership on the importance of the methane fee to address climate change, reduce waste, and protect public health.
Press Contact
Samantha Sadowski, Communications Manager, U.S., ssadowski@catf.us, +1 202-440-1717
About Clean Air Task Force
Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With 25 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world. Visit catf.us and follow @cleanaircatf.
