Sep 25, 2020 - Politics & Policy
Why ending the filibuster might not guarantee big climate legislation after a blue wave
- Ben Geman, author of Axios Generate
If Democrats win the Senate and White House, ending the filibuster would lower the huge hurdles before climate legislation. But there could be other knock-on effects.
The intrigue: Big climate legislation would hardly be a guarantee, given resistance among Democrats from fossil fuel-producing states, according to a wide-ranging election look-ahead note from ClearView Energy Partners.
- And an outside-the-box analysis: "[T]he volatility of a filibuster-free Senate could encourage lawmakers to pass laws that spend money quickly lest a future Congress reverse them."
Why it matters: "[P]ost-filibuster policy volatility could encourage lawmakers to pursue potentially market distorting, up-front spending on energy programs."
- This "race to deploy" could increase renewable project costs.
- "Meanwhile, deadline-driven (rather than market-driven) capacity deployments amid stagnant demand could depress prices for all fuels and technologies."
The big picture: The analysis comes as Joe Biden is calling for a $2 trillion investment in clean energy and climate-friendly infrastructure during his first term.