Energy Policy and Climate Change
The energy and climate bill, intended to deal with global warming and other energy issues, remains stalled in the Senate as the 2010 elections near. The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in April briefly seemed likely to spur movement on the issue. But President Obama’s six-month moratorium on offshore drilling (struck down by a federal judge) only complicated the debate. The biggest sticking point for the energy bill is the controversial cap-and-trade concept, aimed at limiting the amount of greenhouse gases produced. Under cap-and-trade, which conservatives argue would amount to a back-door energy tax, the government would cap the amount of greenhouse gases each company is allowed to permit. At the same time, companies that produced less than their limit would be able to sell unused allowances to companies that have surpassed theirs. It was an important component of the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which the House passed in 2009 and was sponsored by Democratic Reps. Henry Waxman and Edward Markey. Two separate bipartisan groups of senators—one including John Kerry, Joe Lieberman, and Lindsey Graham, the other consisting of Susan Collins and Maria Cantwell—tried to stitch together compromise legislation that would pass that chamber. But the efforts lost momentum in an election year with a crowded congressional calendar.
The latest news on Energy Policy and Climate Change
Could it be that today's monetary policies, coupled with poor domestic energy development plans, are doing more economic harm than good?
It's a good day to be in the biofuels industry, but hard times for those paying at the pump.
Predicting the price of oil is more difficult than it seems, even for energy experts.
Instead of working to increase the price of electricity, it's about time policymakers work on reducing energy prices.
"Doing something" for the economic development means "doing something" for energy development.
California's embrace of the “green” orthodoxy has proven to be expensive and often counterproductive for motorists, home builders, and many other industries.
Don't trust findings that contradict your beliefs (and preferences), but also, don't trust findings that confirm them, either.
If the administration and its congressional allies get their way by imposing higher taxes on oil and gas, the squeeze on seniors' investment returns will only tighten.
Armendariz's comments are a glaring blemish on the administration's attempts to paint a "happy face" on its regulatory zeal.
Tensions appear to have eased with Iran as gas prices lower, but the apparent calm may still conceal an inevitable conflict.
