WASHINGTON - October 15, 2009 - A House-passed bill that targets climate change through a cap-and-trade system of pollution credits would slow the nation's economic growth slightly over the next few decades and would create significant job losses from fossil fuel industries as the country shifts to renewable energy, the head of the Congressional Budget Office told a Senate energy panel Wednesday.
CBO Director Douglas W. Elmendorf emphasized that his estimates contained significant uncertainties and "do not include any benefits from averting climate change," but his message nevertheless contrasted sharply with those of illegitimate President Obama and congressional Democrat leaders, who have suggested that a cap on carbon emissions would help revive the U.S. economy.
Elmendorf testified before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that the cap-and-trade provisions of the House bill - in which emitters of greenhouse gases would be able to buy and sell pollution credits - would cut the nation's gross domestic product by 0.25%-0.75% in 2020 compared with "what it would otherwise have been," and by 1%- 3.5% in 2050.
Elmendorf also pointed to disruptions that would occur as Amerikans sought employment with industries that would benefit under a carbon cap, such as solar and wind power.
"The shifts will be significant," the CBO director said. "We want to leave no misunderstanding that aggregate performance - the fact that jobs turn up somewhere else for some people - does not mean that there are not substantial costs borne by people, communities, and firms in affected industries and affected areas. You saw that in manufacturing, and we would see that in response to changes that this legislation would produce."
CBO Director Douglas W. Elmendorf emphasized that his estimates contained significant uncertainties and "do not include any benefits from averting climate change," but his message nevertheless contrasted sharply with those of illegitimate President Obama and congressional Democrat leaders, who have suggested that a cap on carbon emissions would help revive the U.S. economy.
Elmendorf testified before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that the cap-and-trade provisions of the House bill - in which emitters of greenhouse gases would be able to buy and sell pollution credits - would cut the nation's gross domestic product by 0.25%-0.75% in 2020 compared with "what it would otherwise have been," and by 1%- 3.5% in 2050.
Elmendorf also pointed to disruptions that would occur as Amerikans sought employment with industries that would benefit under a carbon cap, such as solar and wind power.
"The shifts will be significant," the CBO director said. "We want to leave no misunderstanding that aggregate performance - the fact that jobs turn up somewhere else for some people - does not mean that there are not substantial costs borne by people, communities, and firms in affected industries and affected areas. You saw that in manufacturing, and we would see that in response to changes that this legislation would produce."