| Conservative Leaders Write Congress Letter Against Lieberman-Warner Bill | | Print | |
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March 17, 2008 Dear Senator: We the undersigned write to urge you to reject legislation that imposes regulations on American energy usage through a so-called “cap-and-trade” provision in a vain attempt to change global average temperatures. Not only is the underlying assumption of such legislation – that we are experiencing catastrophic, anthropogenic global warming -- highly questionable, but even under the assumptions of most such theories, the current offering of cap-and-trade measures would produce imperceptible climate change while doing grave harm to our economy, the poor, and U.S. competitiveness. As you know, the U.S. Senate is considering the Lieberman-Warner America's Climate Security Act of 2007(S. 2191) which will require a reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the United States. If such a bill passes and is implemented, residential electricity prices are projected to increase by 28 percent by 2015, 40 percent by 2020 and 58 percent by 2050. The American Council for Capital Formation (ACCF) has released a preliminary study* on the economic costs of the Lieberman-Warner bill by Charles River Associates International (CRAI). The study estimates that the price of carbon permits will reach as much as $74 per metric ton of CO2 by 2020 and could increase to $88 by 2030. The study found that: • Higher energy costs would reduce jobs. The United States would lose 3.7 million jobs in 2020 and 13.1 million jobs by 2050. • Household costs rise dramatically. Costs per household rise as emission caps become more difficult to meet. The average household would see increased costs of $1,760 per year in 2020, rising to $3,476 by 2050. • Energy prices rise as the cost of carbon emissions directly impacts the prices paid by consumers for energy. U.S. consumers will pay 49% more for natural gas and 30% more for retail gasoline by 2020. The wholesale price of electricity rises by 94% relative to the baseline in 2020. Families and businesses will pay more. • Economic growth would slow. The loss in the gross national product (GNP) causes the U.S. economy to grow more slowly over time, falling to 2.6% below the baseline forecast in 2020. GSP will remain well below baseline levels after 2020 unless new, affordable GHG-control technologies become available over time. • Most industries suffer losses in production. The output of goods and services declines in almost all U.S. industries. The largest sector, services, falls almost 1% by 2020 relative to the baseline. The greatest impacts are on the electricity and oil sectors, which decline 17% and 21% respectively by 2020. There is a small gain in the gas industry by 2020 that is significantly reduced by 2030. The U.S. agriculture sector’s output falls 3% by 2020. Even though the U.S. population continues to grow and our energy needs continue to increase, Lieberman-Warner would require reducing emissions by 15 percent below 2005 levels by the year 2020. The truth is, even if America could reduce its CO2 emissions to the levels demanded by the Lieberman-Warner bill and every European nation reduced their emissions to the levels required under the Kyoto agreement, it would have little discernable impact on global temperatures. That is due largely to the fact that almost all emissions growth over the 21st century is projected to occur in India, China, and other energy-poor developing countries. Furthermore, satellite measurements indicate that Earth’s atmosphere is warming at a modest rate—roughly 0.14 degrees centigrade per decade. It is not clear that such warming poses a threat to human beings, and may be beneficial. Even without the science-based skepticism about human-induced global climate change, there is little to suggest that the Lieberman-Warner bill will do anything except weaken our economy. According to a report from the European Environmental Agency, European nations that committed to reducing emissions have accumulated significant costs without reducing emissions. In fact, nearly every one of them has higher emissions today than in 1997. We are also concerned that such legislation will lead to higher food prices, hurting the poor. According to Purdue University’s Department of Agricultural Economics: “Based on expected 2007 farm level crop prices, that additional food cost is estimated to be $22 billion for U.S. consumers compared to farm prices for the crops produced in 2005. A rough estimate is that about $15 billion of this increase is related to the recent surge in demand to use crops for fuel.” This burden of higher food prices will be borne by the poor and needy, not only in the U.S., but in the developing world. Finally, a strong note of caution has been sounded by the recent climate data. All four major global temperature monitoring organizations (Hadley, NASA, UAH, and RSS) have released data documenting that over the past year, global temperatures have dropped precipitously. The total amount of cooling ranges from 0.65C to 0.75C. This is the single fastest temperature change ever recorded -- either up or down – for all four organizations. We urge you to reject the alarmist claims of proponents of catastrophic, anthropogenic global warming, and to reject the draconian taxes and regulations on the American people found in bills such as Lieberman-Warner. * The costs detailed in the study are preliminary and the study’s model will be run against updated baseline numbers soon, with additional states added at that time. The preliminary study results can be viewed at: http://www.accf.org/publications/reports/lieberman-warner.html Signed, Grover Norquist, Americans for Tax Reform Paul Weyrich, Coalitions for America Richard Land, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, Southern Baptist Convention Tony Perkins, President, Family Research Council Gary Bauer, President, American Values Rev. Louis P. Sheldon, Chairman, Traditional Values Coalition George Landrith, Frontiers of Freedom Institute Gary Palmer, Alabama Policy Institute Tim Phillips, Americans for Prosperity Sadie Fields, Chairman, Georgia Christian Alliance Anthony Verdugo, Founder and Executive Director, Christian Family Coalition Harry Valentine, Capitol Hill Prayer Alert Jeff Mazzella, President, Center for Individual Freedom Gary Jarmin, President, American Service Council Kelsey Zahourek, Property Rights Alliance Thomas H Schatz, President, Council for Citizens Against Government Waste Ken Blackwell, Coalition for a Conservative Majority Jim Martin, 60-Plus Amy Ridenour, Americans for the Preservation of Liberty Kevin Kearns, U.S. Business and Industry Council Chuck Muth, Citizen Outreach Project Don Irvine, Accuracy In Media Colin Hanna, President, Let Freedom Ring Ron Pearson, Council for America John Kuapisz, American Council for Immigration Reform Demos Chrissos, National Voters Alliance Richard Faulknor, Blue Ridge Forum Larry Gill, President, First Person, Inc. Dee Hodges, Maryland Taxpayers Association Joyce E. Thomann, President, Republican Women of Anne Arundel County-MD Kerri Houston, Interim President, Institute for Liberty Jack Rohrer, Free America Drew Thornley, Texas Public Policy Foundation L. Arnold, Alaska Defenders League Rep. Lawrence Miller, Connecticut General Assembly James Poesl, Senior Environmental Policy Analyst, Decisive Action Tim Nytra, Environmental Manger, Allied Waste Industries, Inc. Ron Richard, Associate Dean, University of Mississippi Dr. Howard Maecabee, Director, Doctors for Disaster Prepardness Paula Easley, RDC, Inc. Dr. Vincent Gray, NZ Climate Coalition Peter K. Seldin, Managing Partner, Centennial Energy Partners, LLC Robert Ferguson, Science & Public Policy Institute Dr. Brian Haynes, AISA Academy J. Scott Armstrong, Professor, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania Tom Mullins, Engineering Manager, Synergy Operating LLC Paul Spite, President, AFD Consulting Brian Lovelle, Attorney, North Carolina Craig Rucker, Executive Director, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow Meredith McCain, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow Barry Schwartz, NOAA Research, Ret. Joseph D’Aleo, Executive Director, Icecap.us Rep. Ralph Watts, Iowa General Assembly Paul Sanders, Engineer, Ret. M.R. Fox, Scientist, American Nuclear Society Viv Forbes, Chairman, Carbon Sense Coalition Harold Shurtleff, The New American James Huffman, Professor, Lewis & Clark Law School Bryan Wermat, Scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Linda C Ruebeck, State Senator(Ret.), Minnesota Dr. Jerome Corsi, WorldNet Daily Barbara Anderson, President, MFI Ryan Nichols, Campus Programs, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow Sen. David Hann, Minnesota State Senate Sen. Chris Gerlach, Minnesota State Senate Baran Mitre, Liberty Institute Amy Hagerstrom, Director, Americans for Prosperity, Michigan Jeff Kropf, Director, Americans for Prosperity, Oregon Robert Hodson, Director Emeritus, Dept. Marine Science, University of Georgia Rep. John Stahl, Michigan House Roy Cordato, VP for Research/Economist, The John Locke Foundation Roy Innis, National Chairman, Congress of Racial Equality Ron Arnold, Executive Vice President, Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise Barrett Duke, Co-Chair, Cornwall Stewardship Agenda Stuart Barton, American Seniors Association Preston Noell III, Tradition, Family Property, Inc. *Organizations are listed for identification purposes onl |
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