Utilities Abandon Business Group Over Climate Bill

By: Stephanie Condon
Topics: Domestic Issues

(AP / CBS)

The CEO of Exelon, the largest utility company in the United States, announced today the company will not renew its membership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce because of the chamber's opposition to climate change legislation.

Exelon is the third utility company in the past week to disassociate with the chamber over climate change.

Speaking at the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy's national conference, Exelon CEO John Rowe said a cap-and-trade system, which the climate change bill passed in the House would enact, would create incentives for energy efficiency.

"Putting a price on carbon is essential, because it will force us to do the cheapest things, like energy efficiency, first," Rowe said in his prepared remarks.

Moreover, Rowe acknowledged that if Congress does not act, the Environmental Protection Agency would be compelled to regulate greenhouse gas emissions after finding that greenhouse gases are a cause of global warming and a threat to public welfare.

"If Congress does not act, the EPA will, and the result will be more arbitrary, more expensive, and more uncertain for investors and the industry than a reasonable, market-based legislative solution," Rowe said in his prepared statement.

Just last week, the Public Service Company of New Mexico, New Mexico's largest utility, as well as California's largest utility, Pacific Gas and Electric Co., also said they were leaving the chamber over its opposition to climate change legislation.

The U.S. chamber says it supports legislative action on climate change but does not support the bill passed in the House over the summer, called the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES). In testimony (PDF) to Congress, the chamber said, "ACES suffers from a number of critical flaws that could cause a significant amount of pain for American businesses while making little to no difference on global CO2 concentrations."

The chamber also takes issue with the EPA's findings that greenhouse gases create a threat to public welfare and has called for a public hearing to dispute that conclusion.

As Washington moves closer to putting a price on carbon, energy companies like Exelon have upped their investments in energy-efficiency technologies. Two of Exelon's utilities, ComEd and PECO, plan to spend $290 million per year over the next five years on energy-efficiency and demand response programs.

Exelon is part of a coalition of companies that are promoting a cap-and-trade system, BusinessWeek reports, and plan to make their case through a media blitz of op-ed articles and direct appeals to Congress.

Stephanie Condon
Stephanie Condon is a political reporter for CBSNews.com.
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by Aldymac September 28, 2009 9:31 PM EDT: The governor of S. Dak. made public statements about how his state could produce ten percent of the nations need for electricity, and wind power would be the way they would do it. He also added, the cost for feeder lines would be a bargain at only a million dollars per mile. What a bargain, EEAY? You can't use existing lines for the wind mills, it's a whole new system, thats why the high cost per mile.
Who stands to profit the most from CRAP AND TRADE? Answer; the environmentalists and their bed partners.(congress)
How many miles is it from S. Dak. to your house? at a million bucks a mile, how does that figure on your electric bill?
However, the jobs created might add up to a dozen per state for maintenance crew, since the enviros will be at the top of the pile for profit the maintenance crew will an extra expense.
Tighten your belts again America, as we already know how to sacrifice, it is the prez and his comrads in congress who don't know, they only know how to tax and spend. And when there is nothing left to tax, will those in power simply hand over the keys of the nation as they split before the American people know what they have done? or will they just apologise and make everything better?; Reply to this comment


by Volke_Locke_N_M September 28, 2009 6:44 PM EDT: ""Putting a price on carbon is essential, because it will force us to do the cheapest things, like energy efficiency, first," Rowe said in his prepared remarks." We are a carbon based life form. Does he want to put a price on us existing too? I would ask him to define himself, but he is not present.; Reply to this comment

by afmcalax September 28, 2009 3:03 PM EDT

I have never seen or heard of anything positive coming out of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They are an organization that basically wants to ensure vast profits with no accountability or responsibility to society. Then when their policies causes economic collapse, environmental devastation, energy dependency, and market dislocations they run to their friends in Congress to have the tax-payers bail them out. Then they start the whole cycle over again.

I put them on the same level as the NRA who just fronts the gun industry while stopping any serious and much needed discussions concerning reasonable gun laws. We need organizations that will put aside their total self-interest and try to resolve societal issues. This single issue organizations don't bring any real intellect to the discussion.

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by Volke_Locke_N_M September 28, 2009 6:52 PM EDT: Don't go dissing the NRA, they stand for good reasons. Also, don't mess with people who like their guns, a lot of them will never let go of them, even if the federal government banned them, "If anyone comes to take my guns away, I will give them a 12 gauge slug"(student). I would not go that far. Charlton Heston said, "If you take my guns away, you will have to take them from my cold dead hands" Again I would not do that either, but I know some people who would not even let them take the gun from their cold dead hands. So please don't mess with them, for your sake"

by stuart-johns September 28, 2009 2:51 PM EDT

Exelon is the third utility company in the past week to disassociate with the chamber over climate change.

Speaking at the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy?s national conference in Chicago, Exelon CEO John Rowe said a cap-and-trade system, which the climate change bill passed in the House would enact, would create incentives for energy efficiency.

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Good for this company. It's about time some of the very companies the republican extremists THINK support them let the republican extremists know that indeed, they are NOT with them on global warming or climate change.

Cap and trade IS a good idea despite the scare tactics used by the republicans. And this came from an EXPERT in the field! It did'nt come from a worthless troll republican wanna-be blogger who is essentially ignorant.

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by cbs4111 September 28, 2009 4:01 PM EDT: Ever think of why the utilities favor this bill? How the heck did the energy companies go from villians under Bush to heroes under Obama? They're the same companies with the same profit motives. Here's why; these companies have interests in natural gas. With Obama's subsidy of wind power under cap and trade, when the wind isn't blowing guess what will pick up the slack in electricity supply? You got it, natural gas turbines. With wind power (which kills birds by the way), we have to pay for not only the wind tubines, but also the electrical power grid to get the power from the remote wind sites, AND the natural gas turbines to pick up when the wind isn't blowing. The cost will be astronomical, and guess who will profit? Duh.

Look into the facts before you start slinging mud. It's probably a good idea to start by following the money. Cap and Trade will create a massive Federal Bureaucracy, will cost every American family almost $2,000 per year, and will do NOTHING to change the climate. No credible study has ever shown otherwise. Not one.


by stuart-johns September 28, 2009 4:30 PM EDT: You're worried about birds? You're a birdbrain.

So tell me Einstein, what exactly IS this astronomical "cost"????

Yeah, I did'nt think you knew. You just want to argue about what MIGHT be, not what is.