EU carbon fees: US bill to shield airlines

The US House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to bar airlines from complying with a European Union law that would force them to pay for their carbon emissions one day after the EU offered to stop the clock on enforcing the measure.

The bill, which was the first piece of legislation to be debated on the House floor after a pre-election recess, directs the transportation secretary to decide to shield U.S. airlines from Europe's carbon emissions trading system if he deems it necessary.

The EU said on Monday it would stop the clock on enforcing its law to create a positive atmosphere for international talks on an alternative global plan to tackle airline emissions.

We are notifying the EU that we are not going to support the scheme, and in fact we want a ... long-term solution, but we will not allow the United States to be held hostage, said Representative John Mica, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure committee.

The bill already cleared the Senate in a unanimous vote in September and will be sent to President Barack Obama for signature.

The White House has not yet taken a position on the bill.

Mica said that despite the EU concession to put its law on hold for one year while the U.N.'s civil aviation body crafts a global framework to address the sector's emissions, the United States had to prevent it from imposing its law again a year from now.

The governing council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) concluded a meeting last Friday, which approved a new process and timeline for the body to decide on a global framework to help the aviation sector slash their greenhouse gas emissions.

The EU, which praised the outcome of that meeting, has said it would scrap the application of its carbon market to non-EU airlines if ICAO can deliver an acceptable framework.

... contd.

ALSO READ

Some of world's biggest bank heists in history

ArcelorMittal reports first quarter loss at $450 million

UK lawmakers set date for Google, Ernst & Young tax grilling

Model S boosts Tesla, but mass market electric cars still elusive