Governors Punt on Global Warming

Kansas City infoZine News - Governors Punt on Global Warming - USA

By Pamela M. Prah - Congress and the White House aren't the only ones who can't agree on a comprehensive energy plan. Neither can the nation's governors.

Philadelphia - infoZine - The National Governors Association is expected to conclude its centennial meeting today (July 14) by urging Congress anew to extend tax breaks that encourage the use of more wind and solar power and energy-efficient buildings, but the governors were too far apart on whether to tackle global warming.

"When we got down to the details, we started to act like Congress, and that's bad," said Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer (D). Schweitzer said many governors were frustrated that NGA Chairman and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty's (R) "bold" energy proposal fell to the wayside.

Pawlenty conceded that while some regions are going forward with proposals to reduce greenhouse gases, "deep differences" existed among the states. "It's not something that the NGA will probably address on a consensus basis," he said in an interview with Stateline.org.

The governors are not divided along party lines. Governors of both parties agree that the country needs to rely less on foreign oil and develop more renewable energy sources, but the costs of regulating greenhouse gases worry states that produce oil and coal, which emit greenhouse gases when burned.