Representative Kathy Castor
2052 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

CC:Members of the House of Representatives

Re:Joint Letter from Non-Profit Groups to Members of the House of Representativeson H.R. 9

DearRepresentative,

Theundersigned organizations strongly urge you to oppose H. R. 9, the ClimateAction Now Act, which if enacted would reverse President Trump’s wise decisionto withdraw the United States from the UN Paris climate treaty. Thislegislative attempt to re-instate the Paris climate treaty would inflictpermanent and irreparable damage to consumers and job-creating businessesacross the country.

Itwould also place the American economy at a global disadvantage. Althoughother nations have ostensibly signed on to the Paris treaty, most either setweak targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions or are failing to meet theirtargets. H. R. 9 would give the force of law to the stringent emissionsreduction targets set unilaterally by President Obama under Paris. It thuswould lock America into costly energy-rationing schemes that our major tradecompetitors like China are not undertaking.  

Theopportunity costs of H. R. 9 are especially great given that America isemerging as the world leader in total fossil fuel production – coal, oil, andnatural gas. The “keep it in the ground” approach embodied by H. R. 9 would force us to forego many energyindustry jobs, undercut our ability to compete head-to-head against OPEC andRussia in energy export markets, and squander the tremendous energy costadvantage enjoyed by the American manufacturing sector that has been growingsince President Trump took office. It would also filter down to consumersand result in higher electric rates, higher natural gas bills for home heating,higher gasoline prices, and higher prices for nearly all goods andservices. In sum, H. R. 9 would bring an end to America’s burgeoning energydominance and rob us of its many benefits.

Theonly way for federal climate legislation to avoid strong opposition is if theactual impacts are left vague. So it is with H. R. 9, particularly givenits highly truncated debate at the committee level. In contrast, the GreenNew Deal resolution goes into considerable detail about its extensive mandatesto micromanage the way Americans live and work, and for that reason it was thesubject of widespread opposition and ridicule. Indeed, every one of theGreen New Deal’s Senate sponsors abandoned it when brought to a vote inMarch. However, it should be noted that the tough emissions reductiontargets in H. R. 9 can only be met by instituting many of the provisions in theGreen New Deal. Thus a vote for H. R. 9 is really a vote for key parts ofthe Green New Deal. 

Forthese reasons, we urge you to vote No on H. R. 9, the Climate Action NowAct. Thank you for considering our views.

Sincerely,