By Avery Palmer CQ Staff
Opponents of federal limits on greenhouse gases are launching ad campaigns in the districts of moderate Democrats negotiating a bill in the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The radio ads sponsored by the American Energy Alliance are running in the districts of nine committee Democrats and one Republican Tim Murphy of Pennsylvania. The ads contend that the bill would hurt the economy and cost jobs.
The lobbying and advocacy group which was formed last year is headed by Thomas J. Pyle a former energy policy aide to onetime Majority Leader Tom DeLay R-Texas (1985-2006). It is affiliated with the Institute for Energy Research a public policy center advocating what it terms freely functioning energy markets."
The new campaign is the latest round in an ad war where labor and environmental groups have also jumped into the fray: MoveOn.org the Alliance for Climate Protection the Blue-Green Alliance and others are running ads supporting the bill.
Democrats are in the midst of negotiating draft legislation with the aim of a markup next week. But to get the measure through the committee they will have to reach agreement with members from coal- and oil-producing states who have concerns about its effect on their districts.
Charlie Gonzalez of Texas one of the Democrats targeted in the ads said he was under pressure from people on both sides. Its very hard for me to go and say I can support something that hasnt been written" he said.
As the bill takes shape he said he wants to address several concerns including the role of the petroleum industry. Oil-patch Democrats are pushing for refineries to receive 5 percent of the emissions allowances under the bills cap and trade" program.
Democrats such as Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania also want allowances to go to electric utilities saying this is the best way to offset impacts on consumers. But Doyle said the ads wont have any effect on him.
My opponent got 8 percent last election so they can run whatever they want to in my district" he said.
The committee is still discussing at least three major issues including the treatment of refiners the design of the cap-and-trade program and the requirement for the purchase of renewable electricity.
"We are carefully reviewing offers and counteroffers" said Rick Boucher D-Va.
Few committee Republicans are expected to vote for the bill. But Republican Mary Bono Mack of California who is undecided said some Democrats have told her theres no way" that they will vote for it either. Certainly there are no Republicans who want to take a difficult vote and allow those on the other side of the aisle to be able to take a free pass" she said.
Murphy who has not signaled his vote co-signed an April 27 letter from members of the Congressional Steel Caucus urging that the bill protect that industry.
Republicans had asked Democrats to hold another hearing on the bill this week but that is no longer expected. We dont need to have a hearing until we know whats in the bill" said Joe L. Barton of Texas the panels ranking Republican.
Gene Green D-Texas said its likely the panel will have one more hearing once the bill is out. They havent said it but I think they have to" he said. We can still do that by having a hearing early next week and then markups on Thursday and Friday."
The new ads say the bill will amount to the largest tax hike in history" and could cost American families more than $3100 a year. That figure is based on a Massachusetts Institute of Technology study that calculated the total value of emissions permits businesses would purchase under a climate change program. The author of the study has called this a misinterpretation because the money would go back into the economy.
An EPA analysis of the draft bill found the average annual household cost could be between $98 and $140 if the government returned most of the revenue to consumers. The committee has not worked out how the bill would distribute funding.
