Pressure on White House to Sign EU Emissions Bill

Stephen Pope

Tuesday, September 25, 2012 at 08:42 PM ET

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Key Takeaways:

Congress is moving forward with legislation to prohibit U.S. aircraft operators from participating in the European Union's aviation greenhouse gas emissions program (EU-ETS).
Both the Senate and House have passed similar bills, which will now be reconciled into a single measure to prevent U.S. operators from being subject to the EU's "carbon tax."
Aviation organizations, including the NBAA, strongly support this prohibition, arguing the EU-ETS threatens U.S. sovereignty and jobs, and is a "fatally flawed" scheme.
These groups advocate for an emissions framework developed by the ICAO and highlight the U.S. aviation industry's continuous efforts to reduce its own carbon footprint.

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Congress has begun the task of drafting legislation that would prohibit operators of U.S.-registered aircraft from participating in a European program to regulate aviation greenhouse emissions by imposing a so-called “carbon tax.”

The Senate this week approved Senate Bill S.1956, the “European Union Emissions Trading Scheme Prohibition Act,” which directs the Department of Transportation to prevent U.S. aircraft operators from taking part in the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS). The House passed similar legislation earlier this year, and the two bills will now be reconciled into a single measure for a final vote.