Cash-For-Clunkers reportedly tacked on to climate bill

It seems that calls from House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) to fast track the Cash-For-Clunkers bill through the legislative process may have fallen on deaf ears. According to the Detroit Free Press, the somewhat controversial bill will be tacked on the much broader Climate Change bill that's currently being drafted by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Proponents for the Cash-For-Clunkers program are still pushing for the bill to acted on apart from the Climate Change bill. Earlier this week, though, the House voted 50-4 in favor of adding the Cash-For-Clunkers amendment to the American Clean Energy and Security Act, which includes a provision to implement a carbon cap and trade plan in the United States. As such, that legislation is expected to take quite some time to navigate its way through the House and Senate, and it now seems likely to have its own Clunker in tow.
[Source: Detroit Free Press | Photo: meshmar2]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
KM 6:44PM (5/20/2009)
They coulda fast tracked it if it had been allocated some bailout money and setup as an economic recovery program meant to boost the economy by encouraging sales of American manufactured autos and dropping the mpg requirement.
Setting it up as a climate change initiative with a mpg stipulation will make it difficult to pass... it'll prolly be shot down by people talking up the increased mpg requirements already passed by the administration.
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GoodCheer 9:39AM (5/21/2009)
"the House voted 50-4"
Hold on... how many seats are there in the House? 435 right. So are 87% of them on vacation, or do they not just care enough to vote?
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Tim 9:58AM (5/21/2009)
What's the worst part of any bill's title?
"..... and for other purposes."
Poison Pills and Pay-to-Play Pork payback are made of such things.
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karenc 8:07PM (6/05/2009)
This bill would put every charity car donation program in the nation out of business since the amount of the voucher would be much greater than the tax deduction. The solution is to simply allow the charity to issue the voucher in lieu of the tax deduction. The charity would then junk the car in accordance with the bill. This way, everyone wins, the car dealer, car maker, car buyer and the charity.
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