IV

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. RES. 211

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the conditions

for the United States becoming a signatory to any international agreement on greenhouse gas emissions under the United Nations Framework

Convention on Climate Change.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 31, 1997

Mr. KNOLLENBERG submitted the following resolution; which was referred to

the Committee on International Relations

RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the conditions for the United States becoming a

signatory to any international agreement on greenhouse

gas emissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Whereas the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (in this resolution referred to as the ‘‘Convention’’), adopted in May 1992, entered into force in

1994 and is not yet fully implemented;

Whereas the Convention, intended to address climate change

on a global basis, identifies the former Soviet Union and

the countries of Eastern Europe and the Organization

For Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),

including the United States, as ‘‘Annex I Parties’’, and
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the remaining 129 countries, including China, Mexico,

India, Brazil, and South Korea, as ‘‘Developing Country

Parties’’;

Whereas in April 1995, the Convention’s ‘‘Conference of the

Parties’’ adopted the so-called ‘‘Berlin Mandate’’;

Whereas the ‘‘Berlin Mandate’’ calls for the adoption, as soon

as December 1997, in Kyoto, Japan, of a protocol or another legal instrument that strengthens commitments to

limit greenhouse gas emissions by Annex I Parties for the

post-2000 period and establishes a negotiation process

called the ‘‘Ad Hoc Group on the Berlin Mandate’’;

Whereas the ‘‘Berlin Mandate’’ specifically exempts all Developing Country Parties from any new commitments in

such negotiation process for the post-2000 period;

Whereas although the Convention, approved by the United

States Senate, called on all signatory parties to adopt

policies and programs aimed at limiting their greenhouse

gas (GHG) emissions, in July 1996 the Undersecretary

of State for Global Affairs called for the first time for

‘‘legally binding’’ emission limitation targets and timetables for Annex I Parties, a position reiterated by the

Secretary of State in testimony before the Committee on

Foreign Relations of the Senate on January 8, 1997;

Whereas greenhouse gas emissions of Developing Country

Parties are rapidly increasing and are expected to surpass emissions of the United States and other OECD

countries as early as 2015;

Whereas the Department of State has declared that it is critical for the Parties to the Convention to include Developing Country Parties in the next steps for global action

and, therefore, has proposed that consideration of addi-
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tional steps to include limitations on Developing Country

Parties’ greenhouse gas emissions would not begin until

after a protocol or other legal instrument is adopted in

Kyoto, Japan in December 1997;

Whereas the exemption for Developing Country Parties is inconsistent with the need for global action on climate

change and is environmentally flawed;

Whereas the House of Representatives strongly believes that

the proposals under negotiation, because of the disparity

of treatment between Annex I Parties and Developing

Countries and the level of required emission reductions,

could result in serious harm to the United States economy, including significant job loss, trade disadvantages,

increased energy and consumer costs, or any combination

thereof; and

Whereas it is desirable that a bipartisan group of Members

of the House of Representatives be appointed by the Majority and Minority Leaders of the House of Representatives for the purpose of monitoring the status of negotiations on Global Climate Change and reporting periodically to the House of Representatives on those negotiations: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that—

3 (1) the United States should not be a signatory

4 to any protocol to, or other agreement regarding, the

5 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

6 Change of 1992, at negotiations in Kyoto in Decem7 ber 1997, or thereafter, which would—
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1 (A) mandate new commitments to limit or

2 reduce greenhouse gas emissions for the Annex

3 I Parties, unless the protocol or other agree4 ment also mandates new specific scheduled

5 commitments to limit or reduce greenhouse gas

6 emissions for Developing Country Parties with7 in the same compliance period, or

8 (B) would result in serious harm to the

9 economy of the United States; and

10 (2) any such protocol or other agreement which

11 would require the advice and consent of the Senate

12 to ratification should be accompanied by a detailed

13 explanation of any legislation or regulatory actions

14 that may be required to implement the protocol or

15 other agreement and should also be accompanied by

16 an analysis of the detailed financial costs and other

17 impacts on the economy of the United States which

18 would be incurred by the implementation of the pro19 tocol or other agreement.

20 SEC. 2. The Clerk of the House of Representatives

21 shall transmit a copy of this resolution to the President.

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