Growing Climate Solutions
Act moves forward with Senate hearing, House bill
The Growing Climate Solutions Act, bipartisan legislation to help spread the use of climate-smart farming methods, advanced in Congress this past week with the introduction of a House bill and a Senate hearing in the Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee. Introduced by Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) in early June, the legislation would help farmers and foresters access carbon credit markets so they can be paid for the carbon emissions they’re preventing and the carbon they’re sequestering. The House version of the bill was introduced Friday by five Republicans and five Democrats, led by Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) and Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE), shown above. “Our volunteers are really enthusiastic about this legislation, and it was very well received in lobby meetings with both Republican and Democratic offices,” said Ben Pendergrass, CCL’s Senior Director of Government Affairs. “The fact that a hearing was held in the Senate is an indication that the Ag Committee intends to mark up the bill and move it out of committee.” Find out more about this legislation and its encouraging prospects in our latest blog post.
Other news this week: Climate report includes carbon price: The Select Committee on the Climate Crisis released its report yesterday, and the good news is that it recommends that Congress put a price on carbon. The report said a carbon price “percolates through the entire economy, providing an incentive for all decision makers in the economy to look for ways to reduce emissions.” Share CCL’s post about the report on Facebook or Twitter. GREEN Act introduced to promote clean energy: Members of the Ways & Means Committee recently introduced the Growing Renewable Energy and Efficiency Now (GREEN) Act (H.R.7330). The bill would expand the federal tax incentives to promote clean energy technologies and support widespread deployment of zero-emissions vehicles. CCL Executive Director Mark Reynolds said, “The tax code is a powerful tool Congress can put to work on climate change, whether in the form of a broad price on carbon or targeted incentives like the ones in this bill.” |
