American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009
Advisor
Semester
Steve Cohen advised the group working on the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which seeks to promote clean energy, more energy efficient technology, global warming pollution reduction, and to create an economy based on these practices. Specific goals of the bill include requiring utilities to use renewable energy for 6% of their power generation in 2012 and 25% by 2025, making "clean coal" a reality, providing greater incentives for electric vehicles, and furthering installation of Smart Grid and Electricity Transmission. This fall, the team focused on developing approaches for successful implementation, which included an agency staffing plan, comprehensive budget, and detailed program timeline. The group’s proposed program design shaped Title III of the Act, which uses a cap-and-trade system to restrict the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced by selected industries and to create a market for pollution reduction. By enhancing existing structures within the Environmental Protection Agency, the program would fall primarily under the Clean Air Markets Division of the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. Furthermore, it would employ the Commodity Future Trading Commission, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and other agencies to be responsible for regulating aspects of the program, such as allowance trading and carbon offsets. The group also proposed a timeline for program implementation, with the official launch of the mandatory trading phase beginning after two years of a preparatory phase and voluntary trading phase. To ensure the success of this program, the group listed several internal performance indicators, such as the adherence to a master calendar, outreach and education, and contract oversight, as well as external indicators, such as allowance trading volume and compliance with the emissions cap. Most importantly, they recognized that a cap-and-trade program alone cannot solve the complicated problem of global warming.