Washington, DC - U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, issued the following statement regarding the Congressional Budget Office's (CBO) score of the Kerry-Boxer, S. 1733, Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act. The cost estimate released by CBO today found that S. 1733 creates a surplus and does not add to the federal deficit over the lifetime of the bill.

Senator Boxer said: "The CBO score shows that there is a way to design a clean energy and climate bill that is fiscally responsible and gets the job done - while protecting the health of our families and the planet."

The cost estimate released today by CBO analyzes the impact on federal revenues of the Kerry-Boxer bill that was reported by the EPW Committee on November 5, 2009. The CBO estimates that the bill creates a $21 billion surplus over the 2010 to 2019 period. In the years after 2019, direct spending would be less than revenues in each of the four decades following 2019.

Revenues generated in Kerry-Boxer are targeted towards protecting consumers; helping families and businesses transition to a clean energy economy; helping communities adapt to the effects of climate change; and making investments in energy efficiency, renewable energy, transportation and other clean energy technologies. A majority of the allowances and revenues generated over the life of the bill are dedicated to consumer protection.


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