Warner-Lieberman Climate Security Act
The Climate Security Act (S2191) is a proposed federal law that would implement a cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gases in the manufacturing, transportation, and power sectors, with the stated aim of curbing anthropogenic global warming. Under the proposed system, companies would be able to expel certain amounts of greenhouse gases up to a quota, after which they could purchase credits to increase their quota from other companies. Fortunately, it was never passed.
Critics of the bill believe it would increase government bureaucracy needlessly, since it contains provisions for four additional government entities to administer the bill's intent, and that the law would not effectively address the issue of climate change. Patrick Michaels of the Cato Institute has said that the bill is "going to cost trillions and do nothing measurable about climate change in the foreseeable future."
Patrick Michaels wrote:
- So, what do you get for your trillions? Climatically, nothing. Assume that all the nations of the world fulfill their obligations under the Kyoto Protocol (they won't!), which reduces global emissions about 5% below 1990 levels. That results in a "savings" of global warming of 0.07 degrees Celsius by 2050—an amount too small to measure, as global temperatures vary on their own about twice that much from year-to-year.
- Now add in Lieberman-Warner. Say the U.S. actually does what the law says, though no one knows how to. The result is an additional 0.013 degrees (C) of "prevented" warming.
- ↑ "Democratic leaders finally killed the debate to avert an embarrassing defeat, but by then they had handed Republicans a powerful political club. Republicans have been bludgeoning Democrats with it ever since." 
- ↑ http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:s.03036:
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cato Scholar Comments on Warner-Lieberman Climate Security Act - May 30, 2008 - Patrick J. Michaels, senior fellow in environmental studies