Senate Weighs Global Warming Energy Tax Bill in Thursday Hearing, CEI Expert to Testify on Disastrous Tax Scheme in Europe

Senate Weighs Global Warming Energy Tax Bill in Thursday Hearing, CEI Expert to Testify on Disastrous Tax Scheme in Europe

Multi-Billion Dollar Costs to Europe, No Results

Washington, D.C., October 29, 2009— In a Thursday hearing, the Senate will hear testimony about a massive energy tax bill in the works.  Sen.  Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who chairs the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, is co-author of the global warming “cap-and-trade” bill that remains near the top of the legislative agenda set forth by President Obama and congressional Democrats.

CEI energy policy expert Iain Murray is set to testify on the disastrous European experience with the sort of plan under consideration in Congress – a plan that would impose a carbon emissions trading scheme on U.S. businesses and consumers.

The Senate bill, S.1733, “replicates policies that have been tried and failed in other nations,” said Murray, in his written testimony for the Committee.  He added, "Because it does not recognize that the path of emissions reduction is rightly unacceptable to developing nations," it “will mean the United States will be placed at a serious economic disadvantage.”

The EU’s policies, said Murray, are “ineffective at best, detrimental to their citizens at worst.”  Murray notes that the USA has outperformed most countries in emissions reduction since 2000, with a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 3 percent.  By comparison, the only major economy to reduce its emissions more was France, at 6 percent.  Most other economies performed much worse.

“The cap-and-tax plan imposed in Europe has so far cost Europe $171 billion and not led to much if any emissions reductions,” said Murray.  “Instead, what European and American lawmakers should do is pursue other avenues than emissions reduction.  Adaptation, scientific research and building resiliency in developing nations are all more promising approaches.”

> Read Iain Murray’s October 29 testimony before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
> Read  more about global warming at www.globalwarming.org

> Read more by Iain Murray