LOCAL REPS’ VOTES ON ENVIRONMENTAL FUNDING ARE REVEALING

By Lauren Barth

The US House of Representatives passed a $27.6 billion appropriation for the interior, environment, and related agencies at the end of June. The votes and debate on various motions to amend the bill revealed interesting facets of our local legislators’ environmental personalities.

For many environmental activists, the most exciting part of the appropriations resolution is Sec. 501, about global climate change.

The bill says
“ (a) The Congress finds that–
(1) greenhouse gases accumulating in the atmosphere are causing average temperatures to rise at a rate outside the range of natural variability and are posing a substantial risk of rising sea-levels, altered patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation, and increased frequency and severity of floods, droughts, and wildfires;
(2) there is a growing scientific consensus that human activity is a substantial cause of greenhouse gas accumulation in the atmosphere; and
(3) mandatory steps will be required to slow or stop the growth of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere.
(b) It is the sense of the Congress that there should be enacted a comprehensive and effective national program of mandatory, market-based limits and incentives on emissions of greenhouse gases that slow, stop, and reverse the growth of such emissions at a rate and in a manner that (1) will not significantly harm the United States economy; and (2) will encourage comparable action by other nations that are major trading partners and key contributors to global emissions.”
Rep. Joe Barton, a Republican from Arlington, offered an amendment to remove Section 501. In debate on his amendment, Barton insisted that he was not convinced that humans were altering the environment. He claimed that “the science on (global warming) is uneven, uncertain and evolving”; and pointed out that the climate often changes, and that CO2 makes up a smaller proportion of greenhouse gas than does water.

Representatives Ted Poe, John Culberson, Kevin Brady, Michael McCaul, and Ronald Paul, all Republicans, supported Barton’s amendment; whereas Al Green, Lloyd Doggett, Sheila Jackson Lee, Nicholas Lampson, and Gene Green, all Democrats, rejected it. The remaining members of the Texas delegation also voted along party lines, except for Reps. Sessions and Ortiz, who were absent for the entire debate. Barton’s amendment failed 153-274 and the section on climate change remains in place.

Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson, a Democrat from Dallas, offered an amendment to prohibit the use of EPA funds to promulgate a rule that would weaken the emission standards outlined in section 112 of the Clean Air Act. Texas Democrats voted for amendment but Republicans opposed it. The amendment passed 252 to 178.
Party politics played a smaller role in Texans’ attitudes toward offshore drilling. Twenty-seven Lone Star representatives supported a failed attempt by John Peterson (R-Pennsylvania) to lift the ban on offshore drilling to allow drilling for natural gas. Peterson argued that Congress should allow companies to drill for gas, as it is a “clean, green” fuel. Opponents protested that drilling for gas cannot be separated from drilling for oil, and that Peterson was just trying to reopen areas closed to drilling. Jackson-Lee, Doggett, and Johnson were the only Texas representatives to oppose the amendment, which failed by a 196-233 vote.

Jackson-Lee, Doggett, Johnson, and Ruben Hinojosa (D-Mercedes) were the only Texans to support an amendment that would have closed the loophole in the Marine Mammal Protection Act that allows the importation of polar bear trophies from Canada. As an alternative to amending the Marine Mammal act, the proposed amendment would have eliminated funds for the issuance of polar bear importation permits, so American hunters would not be able to ship their kills home. It failed 188-242.
Several exciting measures passed by voice vote. Rep. Jane Harman (D, California) moved to amend the bill to stipulate that federal funds could be used to purchase only “Energy Star” or “Federal Energy Management Program” light bulbs, and representatives quickly agreed. Rep. Jackson-Lee proposed restoring full funding to programs that promote reforestation of urban areas, and another voice vote approved her motion.

The House resolution is not the end of the appropriation process. The Senate is still debating its environmental appropriations. When the Senate is finished, a conference committee will combine the plans and both chambers of Congress will decide on a final version to send to the President.

The House’s total appropriation for FY 2008 is $953 billion.