Senate budget measure would forbid considering emissions from exports

A GOP amendment to the Senate Democrats' budget plan would prohibit federal agencies from considering greenhouse gas emissions from exports under a federal environmental law.

The measure from Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) would ensure agencies cannot evaluate emissions “produced outside the United States by any good exported from the United States,” according to Barrasso’s office.

A summary of the amendment contends the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) plans to force federal agencies to consider greenhouse gas emissions under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) before approving projects.

That law requires federal agencies to evaluate the environmental impacts of their actions before they’re made.

Barrasso’s office said the National Association of Manufacturers, which endorsed the amendment, believes using NEPA to account for emissions from exports “could be used to block exports of all types,” including cars, aircraft and heavy equipment.

The amendment follows a Bloomberg report last week that indicated President Obama would use the restrictions to tell “all federal agencies for the first time that they should consider the impact on global warming.”

That story was referencing a 2010 draft guidance by CEQ. The draft doesn’t attempt to regulate greenhouse gas emissions through NEPA or federal agencies, according to the council.

“CEQ proposes to advise Federal agencies to consider, in scoping their NEPA analyses, whether analysis of the direct and indirect [greenhouse gas] emissions from their proposed actions may provide meaningful information to decision makers and the public,” the draft reads.

The council is still receiving public comment on the draft and has not indicated when it will be finalized.