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Thune presses House to accept Senate deal on airline emissions
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), a member of the Senate’s GOP leadership, is pressing House lawmakers to accept the upper chamber’s version of legislation that protects U.S. airlines from paying greenhouse gas emissions costs imposed by European officials.
The Senate unanimously passed a bill early Saturday that bars U.S. airlines from participating in the European Union’s (EU) emissions trading system.
“The Senate’s action today will help ensure that U.S. air carriers and passengers will not be paying down European debt through this illegal tax and can instead be investing in creating jobs and stimulating our own economy,” Thune, the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, said in a statement Saturday.
The EU requirements are deeply unpopular with American officials and airlines, who oppose application of Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions credits trading system on flights to and from the continent.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told a Senate panel in June that the EU system’s application to aviation is “lousy” policy.
However, lawmakers face a short window to reach a final deal, and the Senate compromise differs somewhat from the version that cleared the House last October.
The Senate’s plan contains a provision that enables the U.S. to reassess the exemption if the European system is altered; or if there’s an international agreement on airline emissions or U.S. rulemaking to address the pollution.
The bill calls on U.S. officials to pursue a worldwide approach to address aircraft emissions.
But EU climate chief Connie Hedegaard, in a statement to news outlets on Saturday, appeared to question the level of U.S. commitment to crafting a global pact.
“It’s not enough to say you want it, you have to work hard to get it done,” she said, according to Reuters. “That means that the U.S. needs to change its approach in the [United Nations’ International Civil Aviation Organization] and show willingness to actually seal a meaningful global deal that will facilitate action.”
Airlines for America, which is the main trade group for the U.S. industry, cheered the legislation on Saturday, lauding Thune and co-sponsor Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) in a statement alleging that U.S. airlines “should not be subjected to this illegal scheme that amounts to little more than a cash grab for the European Union.”
“We commend Senators John Thune and Claire McCaskill for their leadership in passage of this crucial legislation that recognizes this scheme is a breach of U.S. sovereignty that actually limits our ability to build on our strong environmental record by investing in new and more fuel-efficient aircraft,” said Nicholas E. Calio, the group’s president.
