Emissions Cap and Trade Act

AN ACT to create a cap and trade system in the private sector to begin a market for buying and selling carbon permits.

Authored and sponsored by: Rep. JohnGRobertsJr (D-DX-1) Co Sponsored by: Rep. Brihimia (D-US) Co Sponsored by: Rep. skiboy625 (D-LN-2)

Co Sponsored by: Senator Polkadot48 (D-CH)

WHEREAS, The United States continues to fail to address the climate crisis we find ourselves in.

WHEREAS, Studies and estimations continue to suggest that the private sector is the main cause for emissions, and face no repercussions for the continued emission of greenhouse gasses.

WHEREAS, The federal government should implement a cap and trade system for carbon, which has shown great success at reducing emissions in other countries. By putting limits on companies emissions and forcing them to purchase permits for extra emissions.

Be it enacted by the House of Representatives and Senate of the United States in Congress assembled

Sec. 1: Title and Severability

(a) This act shall be known as the “Emissions Cap and Trade Act”

(b) The provisions of this act are severable. If any part of this act shall be found unconstitutional, then that part shall be struck.

Sec. 2: Definitions

(a) “Permits," as used within this Act, shall refer to waivers created and sold by the Department of Commerce which permit a specific quantity of emissions to be produced by a business or other entity within a given year, in excess of any emission limit mandated by a Board of Emissions as provided for within Section 3 of this Act.

(b) "Emissions," as used in this Act, shall refer to the annual tonnage of carbon dioxide (or carbon dioxide equivalents, as defined by the United States Environmental Protection Agency) released into the air by the entity in question.

Sec. 3: Estimation boards and permit system.

(a) The Department of Commerce shall establish five (5) Boards of Emissions, with each having authority and responsibility over each state within the United States. The membership of these boards will be made up of experts in the field, and shall serve five (5) year terms at the pleasure of the Department's Secretary.

(b) Following a brief inspection and estimation from the board of a company’s emissions, they will receive a carbon limit, equal to approximately 92% of the company’s estimated emissions, to encourage the business to make cuts or buy permits.

(c) Companies will make emissions reports at the end of each year. These reports will be public information.

(d) It shall be unlawful for a business or other entity to exceed the emission limits set for them by their associated Board of Emissions, unless such entity have ownership of the quantity of Permits necessary to waive such limit.

• (I) If an entity uses Permits to exceed an emission limit, such Permits are consumed by such action and cannot be used again to exceed such limit at any point in the future, by any entity.

• (II) If an entity exceeds such limit without the adequate use of a Permit or Permits, such entity shall be fined a value which is no less than $200 per metric ton of carbon dioxide (or carbon dioxide equivalent) produced which exceeds their emission limit.

(e) The Department of Commerce, in cooperation with the Boards of Emissions, shall provide to businesses within the United States the opportunity to purchase Permits.

• (I) The price of such Permit shall be no less than $100 per metric ton of carbon dioxide (or carbon dioxide equivalent).

• (II)The Department of Commerce shall never sell an amount of Permits per year which, in total and if all were consumed during such year, would result in no decrease in emissions among all entities which have been given an emission limit by a Board of Emissions.

• (III)The Department of Commerce shall have the goal of minimizing the amount of Permits sold, in accordance with a goal of reducing the emissions produced by all entities which have been given an emission limit by a Board of Emissions.

(f) The Department of Commerce, with the advice of the Department of Energy and the House committee on Science, Energy, Environment and Commerce, may, each year after the enactment of this Act, provide for an increase in the price of Permits sold.

(g) This program shall be headed by the Department of Commerce, with cooperation with the Department of Energy, and with the supervision of the House committee for Science, Energy, Environment, and Commerce.

(h) The independent boards shall have one year to conduct their estimations to create emissions limits. These limits could be either conducted on a per business basis (as would be recommended for larger corporations) or limits will be assigned to different groups of companies depending on the products and services they provide, the amount of greenhouse gases the boards believe they produce, or their overall size as determined by their number of employees, and capitol.

Section 4: Plain English

(a) This act will begin the process of creating a fair system of implementing a market for carbon emissions permits, in order to make sure that companies that emit more will need to face consequences.

Sec. 5: Enactment

(a) This bill comes into force upon being signed into law. The boards created under this act will have two years to create emissions estimates and inspections on companies, to create limits for the company.

This legislation was authored by Representative JohnGRobertsJr (D-DX-1)