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106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2221

To prohibit the use of Federal funds to implement the Kyoto Protocol to

the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change until

the Senate gives its advice and consent to ratification of the Kyoto

Protocol, and to clarify the authority of Federal agencies with respect

to the regulation of emissions of carbon dioxide.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JUNE 15, 1999

Mr. MCINTOSH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the

Committee on Commerce

A BILL

To prohibit the use of Federal funds to implement the Kyoto

Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention

on Climate Change until the Senate gives its advice

and consent to ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, and

to clarify the authority of Federal agencies with respect

to the regulation of emissions of carbon dioxide.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Small Business, Fam5 ily Farms, and Constitutional Protection Act’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:

3 (1) The provision of the Departments of Vet4 erans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development,

5 and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999,

6 that prohibits the use of Federal funds to implement

7 the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Frame8 work Convention on Climate Change prior to its

9 ratification should be extended and strengthened.

10 (2) The Environmental Protection Agency

11 claims that it has authority under the Clean Air Act

12 to regulate carbon dioxide as a ‘‘pollutant’’, although

13 the Administrator of the Environmental Protection

14 Agency has not yet proposed to regulate carbon di15 oxide under the Act.

16 (3) When the Congress enacted and amended

17 the Clean Air Act, it did not delegate to the Envi18 ronmental Protection Agency authority to regulate

19 carbon dioxide. Such regulation would constitute a

20 usurpation of legislative power.

21 (4) Furthermore, regulation of carbon dioxide

22 would necessarily have the effect of implementing

23 the Kyoto Protocol.

24 (5) Since a speech by the President on October

25 22, 1997, the Administration has called for enact26 ment of a program commonly known as ‘‘credit for
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1 early action’’ or ‘‘early action crediting’’ as part of

2 its global climate change policy.

3 (6) Early action crediting is fundamentally a

4 strategy to prematurely implement the nonratified

5 Kyoto Protocol and to build a pro-Kyoto business

6 constituency.

7 (7) Early action crediting would reward some

8 big businesses for taking steps to comply with the

9 Kyoto Protocol prior to its ratification.

10 (8) Early action crediting would also encourage

11 participating big businesses to support ratification,

12 because participants would acquire costly paper as13 sets that could be used as emission credits under a

14 future regulatory system and that could be mone15 tized if the Kyoto Protocol were ratified.

16 (9) Early action crediting is not a truly vol17 untary program, because it would penalize non-par18 ticipants by reducing the supply of emission credits

19 available to them in the first Kyoto Protocol compli20 ance period.

21 (10) Early action crediting would increase com22 pliance costs under the Kyoto Protocol for small

23 businesses and family farms, which generally lack

24 the technical expertise and discretionary capital re25 quired for participation in emissions reduction
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1 projects and lack the legal sophistication necessary

2 to negotiate early action agreements with Federal

3 agencies.

4 (11) Early action crediting would lose even the

5 pretense of being voluntary if it were administered

6 by the Environmental Protection Agency or any

7 other agency wielding powers of regulatory coercion.

8 (12) Companies already may voluntarily record

9 and report their actions to reduce greenhouse gases

10 under section 1605 of the Energy Policy Act of

11 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13385). That section is adminis12 tered by the Energy Information Administration, an

13 agency with no regulatory authority or agenda.

14 (13) Early action crediting is not needed to

15 protect early big business emissions reducers from

16 any extra costs under the Kyoto Protocol, because,

17 as a practical political matter, the Kyoto Protocol

18 will not be ratified and implementing legislation will

19 not be adopted without the active support of the pol20 icy makers and big businesses advocating early ac21 tion crediting.

22 (14) The most effective way for members of the

23 Congress to protect United States competitiveness,

24 small businesses, and family farms from the regu25 latory excesses of a possible future climate treaty is
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1 to declare their unequivocal and unqualified opposi2 tion to the Kyoto Protocol.

3 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are the fol4 lowing:

5 (1) To safeguard the Senate’s constitutional

6 role in treaty making.

7 (2) To prevent implementation of the Kyoto

8 Protocol prior to its ratification.

9 (3) To protect small businesses and family

10 farms from incurring additional costs under a future

11 climate change treaty or domestic program to regu12 late greenhouse gas emissions.

13 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON FEDERAL ACTIONS TO IMPLE14 MENT THE KYOTO PROTOCOL.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Federal funds may not be used

16 to propose or issue rules, regulations, decrees, or orders

17 or used to propose or issue rules, regulations, decrees, or

18 orders or for programs designed to implement, or in prep19 aration for implementing, the Kyoto Protocol to the

20 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

21 Change before the date on which the Senate gives its ad22 vice and consent to ratification of the Kyoto Protocol.

23 (b) NO FEDERAL AUTHORITY TO REGULATE CAR24 BON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS.—Notwithstanding any other

25 provision of law, no Federal Agency has authority to pro-
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1 mulgate regulations to limit emissions of carbon dioxide

2 unless a law is enacted after the date of enactment of this

3 Act that specifically grants such authority.

4 (c) RESTRICTION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR REGU5 LATORY CREDITS.—Notwithstanding any other provision

6 of law, Federal funds may not be used to advocate, de7 velop, or implement a program providing regulatory cred8 its for early voluntary greenhouse gas emission reductions,

9 before the date on which the Senate gives its advice and

10 consent to ratification of the Kyoto Protocol.

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