Senate climate bill aims for more aggressive targets than House

The Senate climate change bill to be introduced Wednesday will seek to set even more stringent regulations on emissions than is called for in legislation passed by the House.

The draft cap-and-trade bill to be introduced tomorrow by Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) will call for a 20 percent reduction in emissions by 2020, compared to the 17 percent reduction mandated by the bill which passed the House in late June.

The Senate bill had been expected to pursue slightly more relaxed guidelines than the House in a bid to win over centrist senators and those representing rural states, which may face a disproportionate share of the burdens from the new regulation.

The Boxer bill reflects complains from some liberal Democrats and environmental activists who said that the House bill -- which passed by a 219-212 vote -- had watered down its provisions in a bow to corporate lobbying and centrist, Blue Dog Democrats. 44 Democrats in the House voted against their own party's bill.

The bill includes the fundamental framework of the cap-and-trade system, though it leaves some issues such as the amount of allowances to be distributed to companies.

The legislation also maintains "border adjustment" provisions that would impose tariffs against products from countries without similarly aggressive climate change plans. The bill also includes a yet-to-be specified provision funding research into nuclear energy in a potential concession to Republicans, who have pleaded for more nuclear energy options.