Congressional Republicans are poised to approve a non-binding resolution to condemn the idea of a carbon tax, putting lawmakers on record as opposing an approach combating climate change that’s favored by ExxonMobil and other large oil companies.
Bloomberg reports the House strategy is being pushed by Majority Whip Steve Scalise, a Metairie Republican whose district includes southern Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes, and is backed by Koch Industries. The symbolic measure aims to lock in hundreds of votes against a tax on carbon dioxide emissions blamed for climate change.
The tactic is designed to weaken the ability of a future president and Congress to levy such a tax to help pay for a broad overhaul of the U.S. tax code, says Republican strategist Mike McKenna.
“The more you vote on something, the harder it is to vote the other way,” McKenna says.
The House last touched the issue in 2013, when it voted 237-176 to adopt a Scalise-sponsored amendment requiring the administration to receive approval from Congress before implementing a carbon tax.
By contrast, the measure up for a House floor vote today is a stand-alone resolution asserting that “a carbon tax would be detrimental to American families and businesses, and is not in the best interest of the United States.”
Some big oil companies, such as Exxon Mobil, disagree with the Republican effort. Exxon has not taken a formal position on the Scalise resolution but has lobbied on Capitol Hill for a revenue-neutral carbon tax to take the place of environmental regulations that raise the cost of fossil fuels.
