{"id":1621439,"date":"2022-08-25T18:48:12","date_gmt":"2022-08-25T22:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1621439"},"modified":"2022-08-25T18:49:46","modified_gmt":"2022-08-25T22:49:46","slug":"federal-government-imposes-first-of-its-kind-fee-on-greenhouse-gas-emissions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-government-imposes-first-of-its-kind-fee-on-greenhouse-gas-emissions\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal Government Imposes First-of-Its-Kind Fee on Greenhouse Gas Emissions"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ffederal-government-imposes-first-of-its-kind-fee-on-greenhouse-gas-emissions%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1621439&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Hidden deep within the more than 700 pages of the recently enacted <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-inflation-reduction-act\">Inflation Reduction Act<\/a> (IRA) is a provision that intends to boost the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s (EPA) power to regulate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/t-greenhouse-gas-emissions\">greenhouse gas emissions<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Specifically, the IRA establishes the \u201cMethane Emission Reduction Program\u201d under a new section in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.govinfo.gov\/content\/pkg\/USCODE-2013-title42\/html\/USCODE-2013-title42-chap85-subchapI-partA.htm\">Clean Air Act<\/a>, allowing the EPA to impose a fee on certain \u201cair pollutants.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Importantly, this is the first time the federal government has ever imposed a fee on any\u00a0greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and is part of Congress\u2019 effort to bolster the EPA\u2019s power to address the \u201cclimate crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Congress Sends a Message<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>In June, the U.S. Supreme Court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/21pdf\/20-1530_n758.pdf\">ruled<\/a> in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency that the EPA didn\u2019t have the authority under the Clean Air Act or the Clean Power Plan to essentially force power plants to transition more toward wind and solar.<\/p>\n<p>Moreover, the court\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/21pdf\/20-1530_n758.pdf\">determined<\/a> that the interpretive question raised under the Clean Power Plan fell under the \u201cmajor questions doctrine,\u201d which states that Congress must make a \u201cclear statement\u201d if it wants to delegate authority \u201cof this breadth to regulate a fundamental sector of the economy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Notably, the ruling expressly limited the EPA\u2019s ability to regulate carbon emissions from power plants, which President Joe Biden <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/briefing-room\/statements-releases\/2022\/06\/30\/statement-by-president-joe-biden-on-supreme-court-ruling-on-west-virginia-v-epa\/\">called<\/a> \u201cdevastating.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Biden further added that he planned to \u201cfind ways that we can, under federal law, continue protecting Americans from harmful pollution, including pollution that causes climate change.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4669360\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2022\/08\/16\/Biden-sign-the-inflation-reduction-act-1200x800.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4669360 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/img.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/uploads\/2022\/08\/16\/Biden-sign-the-inflation-reduction-act-1200x800.jpg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> President Joe Biden signs the Inflation Reduction Act as Democrat lawmakers look on at the White House in Washington, on Aug. 16, 2022. (Drew Angerer\/Getty Images)<\/figure>\n<p>Enter the IRA and Congress\u2019 \u201cclear statement\u201d on what it wants the EPA to do.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) <a href=\"https:\/\/aboutblaw.com\/4x0\">said<\/a> Congress\u2019 passing of the IRA \u201cmodernized\u201d the Clean Air Act and established the EPA\u2019s authority \u201cto protect American families from climate and air pollution.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, via the IRA, Congress reaffirmed that GHGs are \u201cair pollutants\u201d and further specified that the term \u201cgreenhouse gas\u201d includes the pollutants \u201ccarbon dioxide, hydrofluorocarbons, methane, nitrous oxide, perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese new Clean Air Act sections and the new provisions that rely on the Clean Air Act reinvigorate EPA\u2019s responsibilities under the law addressing the climate crisis and long-standing inequities with new tools, new solutions, unprecedented investments, additional policies, and with great urgency,\u201d EDF concludes.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Incentives and Penalties<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The IRA includes several tax credits, incentives, and grants, totaling $369 billion for \u201cEnergy Security and Climate Change investments.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And the investments include more than $1.5 billion to the EPA for \u201cgrants, rebates, contracts, loans\u201d and \u201cother activities\u201d to reduce GHG emissions in the natural gas and oil sector.<\/p>\n<p>But incentives aren\u2019t the only tool the IRA utilizes regarding the oil and gas sector.<\/p>\n<p>According to a <a href=\"https:\/\/crsreports.congress.gov\/product\/pdf\/R\/R47206\">report<\/a> from the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the Methane Emissions Reduction Program applies to specific types of facilities that report their GHG emissions to the EPA\u2019s Greenhouse Gas Emission Reporting Program.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4676260\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Environmental-Protection-Agency-1200x800-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy wp-image-4676260 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/themes\/eet\/images\/white.png\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Environmental-Protection-Agency-1200x800-1.jpg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-4676260 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Environmental-Protection-Agency-1200x800-1.jpg\" alt=\"Epoch Times Photo\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> A view of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency headquarters in Washington, D.C., on March 16, 2017. (Justin Sullivan\/Getty Images)<\/figure>\n<p>Specifically, the facilities that the charge <a href=\"https:\/\/crsreports.congress.gov\/product\/pdf\/R\/R47206\">applies<\/a> to include:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOffshore and onshore petroleum and natural gas production, onshore natural gas processing and transmission compression, underground natural gas storage, liquified natural gas storage, liquified natural gas imports and exports, onshore petroleum and natural gas gathering and boosting, and finally, onshore natural gas transmission pipelines.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In other words, the EPA now has the authority to impose charges on oil and gas power plants, fulfilling SCOTUS\u2019s requirement.<\/p>\n<p>More importantly, facilities that fall under one or more of the above categories and exceed a specific methane threshold (thresholds vary by facility type) will have to pay $900 per metric ton of methane starting in 2024.<\/p>\n<p>In 2025, the charge increases to $1,200, and in 2026 and beyond, the cost is $1,500.<\/p>\n<p>The Congressional Budget Office <a href=\"https:\/\/crsreports.congress.gov\/product\/pdf\/R\/R47206\">estimates<\/a>, based on 2019 data, that the new fees will raise $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2026, and almost $1.9 billion by fiscal 2028. CBO projects revenues will decrease after that as facilities implement methane reduction strategies.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>EPA Powers Up<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Methane is the primary component of natural gas, and the EPA <a href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/ghgemissions\/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks\">reports<\/a> that methane emissions accounted for 11 percent of total U.S. GHG emissions in 2020. Carbon dioxide (CO2) accounted for 79 percent.<\/p>\n<p>However, methane is considered more \u201cpotent\u201d than CO2, with some experts putting its \u201cclimate change impact\u201d at 25 to 72 times greater than the equivalent mass of CO2. Consequently, reducing methane emissions is \u201cone of the best opportunities for reducing near term [global] warming,\u201d CRS <a href=\"https:\/\/crsreports.congress.gov\/product\/pdf\/R\/R47206\">says<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_2064910\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/AP_16133540223906-1200x781-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy wp-image-2064910 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/assets\/themes\/eet\/images\/white.png\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/AP_16133540223906-1200x781-1.jpg\" alt=\"methane emissions\" width=\"640\" height=\"417\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-2064910 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/AP_16133540223906-1200x781-1.jpg\" alt=\"methane emissions\" width=\"640\" height=\"417\" \/><\/noscript><\/figcaption><\/a> Oil is pumped and natural gas is flared off on an oilfield near Watford City, N.D., on June 12, 2014. (Charles Rex Arbogast\/AP)<\/figure>\n<p>Further, Biden made it clear that by 2030, he wants GHG emissions reduced by 40 percent compared to 2005 levels; reduction levels of that amount require significant transformation.<\/p>\n<p>The IRA\u2019s passage and its implementation of a methane charge put Biden\u2019s goals within reach.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, the Department of Energy <a href=\"https:\/\/www.energy.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/2022-08\/8.18%20InflationReductionAct_Factsheet_Final.pdf\">reports<\/a> that because of the IRA, the United States will not only meet the 40 percent reduction goal but exceed it, as it now projects GHG emissions at 50 to 52 percent below 2005 levels.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/crsreports.congress.gov\/product\/pdf\/R\/R47206\">According<\/a> to the EPA, the primary source of methane emissions isn\u2019t natural gas or oil\u2014it\u2019s livestock.<\/p>\n<div class=\"author_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"one_author_block round\">\n<div class=\"top_row\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theepochtimes.com\/author-katie-spence\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/WEB_KatieSpence.jpg\" alt=\"Katie Spence\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Follow<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Katie covers energy and politics for The Epoch Times. Before starting her career as a journalist, Katie proudly served in the Air Force as an Airborne Operations Technician on JSTARS. She obtained her degree in Analytic Philosophy and a minor in Cognitive Studies from the University of Colorado. Katie\u2019s writing has appeared on CNSNews.com, The Maverick Observer, The Motley Fool, First Quarter Finance, The Cheat Sheet, and Investing.com. Email her at katie.spence@epochtimes.us<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hidden deep within the more than 700 pages of the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is a provision that intends to boost the Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s (EPA) power to<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1621441,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1621439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1621439","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1621439"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1621439\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1621441"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1621439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1621439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1621439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}