Murkowski cautions against lumping energy and climate in one bill
March 7, 2009
03:56 PM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: ROBERT DILLON (202) 224-6977
MARCH 7, 2009 or ANNE JOHNSON (202) 224-7875
MURKOWSKI CAUTIONS AGAINST LUMPING ENERGY AND CLIMATE INTO A SINGLE BILL
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, on Friday responded to comments by the Senate majority leader about the possibility of combining energy legislation with a cap and trade measure on the Senate floor this year.
Lumping two very controversial pieces of legislation into a single-bill strategy will make final passage very difficult, Murkowski said.
“The energy committee is drafting a comprehensive energy bill that already includes a number of areas where reaching consensus is challenging,” Murkowski said. “Combining that energy bill with a controversial cap and trade proposal will make getting to 60 votes on the floor an almost impossible lift.”
Murkowski, the ranking Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and her staff are working in a bipartisan fashion with Chairman Jeff Bingaman and his staff on a comprehensive energy bill that they hope to mark up before the end of March.
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