This resolution recognizes the fifth anniversary of the adoption of the Paris Agreement, an international agreement to keep global temperature from rising 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels. It also recommends that the United States rejoins the global warming agreement.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1260 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1260
Recognizing the 5th anniversary of the adoption of the international
Paris Agreement on climate change.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 10, 2020
Mr. Lowenthal (for himself, Mr. Beyer, Mr. Ted Lieu of California, Ms.
Barragan, Mr. Quigley, Mr. Casten of Illinois, Mr. Foster, Mr. Levin of
Michigan, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr. Sires, Ms. Pingree, Mr.
Welch, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Hastings, Mr. Smith of
Washington, Mr. Rush, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Kildee, Mr. Khanna, Ms.
Velazquez, Mr. Case, Ms. Meng, Mr. Connolly, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Mr.
Grijalva, Ms. Haaland, Ms. Brownley of California, Mr. McEachin, Ms.
Norton, Mr. Raskin, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms.
Matsui, Mr. Keating, Mr. Panetta, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr.
DeSaulnier, Mr. Tonko, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Mr.
Deutch, Mr. Kilmer, Mr. Gomez, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mrs. Lawrence,
Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York, Ms. Speier, Ms. Castor of Florida,
Mr. Sherman, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Carbajal, Mr. Suozzi, Mr. Trone, Mr.
Peters, Mrs. Kirkpatrick, Mr. Cohen, Mr. McNerney, Mr. Vargas, Mr.
Levin of California, Ms. Jayapal, Mr. Schneider, Mr. Correa, Mr.
Thompson of California, Mr. Michael F. Doyle of Pennsylvania, Ms.
Escobar, Mr. O'Halleran, Mr. Meeks, Ms. Sanchez, and Mr. McGovern)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and
Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the
jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the 5th anniversary of the adoption of the international
Paris Agreement on climate change.
Whereas the Paris Agreement, adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 5 years
ago on December 12, 2015, represents the first comprehensive agreement
among all countries to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius
compared with the preindustrial era;
Whereas the Paris Agreement urges efforts to limit global warming to one and a
half degrees Celsius;
Whereas there are 197 parties, including the United States, to the UNFCCC, the
principal framework to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations at a
level that would prevent dangerous, human-induced interference with the
climate system;
Whereas 194 parties have signed the Paris Agreement, and 189 parties have
adopted the Paris Agreement;
Whereas, on June 1, 2017, President Donald J. Trump announced his intention to
withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement;
Whereas, on May 2, 2019, the House of Representatives passed in a bipartisan
vote H.R. 9, the Climate Action Now Act, that would have kept the United
States in the Paris Agreement;
Whereas, on November 4, 2019, the Trump administration gave the United Nations
formal notice of its intent to withdraw the United States from the Paris
Agreement, initiating the year-long withdrawal process;
Whereas, on November 4, 2020, the United States became the first and only
signatory of the Paris Agreement to withdraw;
Whereas, on November 4, 2020, President-elect Joseph R. Biden, Jr., stated that
the United States would rejoin the Paris Agreement on January 20, 2021,
the first day the new administration will take office;
Whereas the human influence on the climate system is unequivocal and evident
from the increasing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere,
positive radiative forcing, observed warming, and understanding of the
climate system;
Whereas sustained, robust Federal support of climate science, observations, and
modeling plays a key role in understanding the impacts of climate change
in the United States and around the world, and will increase in
importance as communities and the economy continue to feel the
intensifying effects of climate change;
Whereas according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, without
additional mitigation efforts, there is a very high risk that global
warming by the end of the 21st century will lead to severe, widespread,
and irreversible impacts globally;
Whereas according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special
Report on Climate Change and Land, the land surface air temperature has
risen nearly twice as much as the global average temperature since the
preindustrial period, and climate change has adversely impacted food
security, is contributing to desertification and land degradation, and
is creating stresses on land that exacerbate existing risks to
livelihoods, biodiversity, human and ecosystem health, infrastructure,
and food systems;
Whereas according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special
Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate, the sea level
continues to rise at an increasing rate, with the ocean projected to
experience increased temperatures, further acidification, oxygen
decline, and more frequent extreme weather events, exacerbating risks
for human communities in low-lying coastal areas;
Whereas according to the National Climate Assessment, impacts of climate change
are already being felt in communities across the United States;
Whereas according to the National Climate Assessment, the global average
temperature is projected to increase from 3 to 12 degrees Fahrenheit by
2100, which will cause a reduction in crop yields, alteration of
hydrological cycles, shrinkage of glaciers and ice sheets, thawing of
permafrost at high altitude, increase of flooding, wildfires, droughts,
heat waves, cyclones, and other extreme weather events, greater risk of
species extinctions, and more;
Whereas according to the National Climate Assessment, the relative sea level is
projected to rise between about 2.5 and 11.5 feet by 2100 while ocean
warming and acidification increase, causing a proportional increase in
destructive coastal storms and surges, disruption of ecosystems
including spawning and migration patterns of key fisheries, displacement
of people on vulnerable coastlines and islands, and more;
Whereas a 2017 Government Accountability Office report found that climate-
related impacts, such as coastal property damage, cost the Federal
Government $350,000,000,000;
Whereas a November 2016 assessment by the Office of Management and Budget and
the Council of Economic Advisers found that recurring costs as a result
of climate change could increase the Federal Government's expenses by
$12,000,000,000 to $35,000,000,000 a year by midcentury, possibly
reaching more than $100,000,000,000 annually by the end of the century;
Whereas climate change not only threatens the world's weather, biodiversity, and
ecosystems, but also threatens human security, economic vitality, and
social stability around the globe;
Whereas the effects of climate change will only exacerbate issues of resource
scarcity, including lack of access to primary natural resources such as
fresh water and arable land for food production, thereby contributing to
increased conflict, poverty, food insecurity, and instability;
Whereas this increased conflict and instability, as well as limited capacity to
adapt to extreme weather, may force large-scale displacement and both
internal and cross-border migration of people, thereby contributing to
increased risks to human security and economic systems;
Whereas the impacts of climate change will often be most severely felt by poor
and socially excluded groups, such as ethnic minorities, women, older
people, and children, whose capacity to adapt to both rapid- and slow-
onset climate change is more limited;
Whereas the global community can limit the risks of climate change by reducing
emissions of greenhouse gases and strengthening the capacity of
communities to adapt to climate change;
Whereas to enable developing countries to combat climate change and adapt to its
impacts, developed countries will need to mobilize economic resources,
beginning with fulfilling their pledge of mobilizing $100,000,000,000 of
climate financing from both public and private sources annually
beginning in 2020, some of which will support the Green Climate Fund;
Whereas the United States pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28
percent below 2005 levels in the United States by 2025, and to
contribute $3,000,000,000 to the Green Climate Fund;
Whereas 29 States and the District of Columbia have adopted renewable portfolio
standard requirements, 23 States and the District of Columbia have
adopted greenhouse gas emissions targets, 27 States have adopted energy
efficiency resource standards, 13 States have adopted zero-emission or
low-emission vehicle targets, and 10 States have implemented the
Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative;
Whereas more than 160 cities in the United States have adopted 100 percent clean
and renewable energy goals and 6 cities have already achieved this goal;
Whereas more than 400 city leaders across the United States have joined the
Climate Mayors association, a bipartisan network of mayors working
together to lead on climate change through meaningful actions in their
communities, and to build political will for effective Federal and
global policy action for climate progress;
Whereas 24 States, Puerto Rico, and American Samoa have joined the United States
Climate Alliance, a bipartisan coalition of Governors committed to
reducing greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the goals of the Paris
Agreement;
Whereas more than 3,000 bipartisan businesses, cities and counties, colleges and
universities, cultural institutions, health care organizations, faith
groups, States, and Tribal nations have signed the ``We're Still In''
declaration, promising to world leaders that Americans will not retreat
from the global pact to reduce emissions and stem the causes of climate
change; and
Whereas the Paris Agreement secured commitments from other member countries,
including China and India, for a global agreement that could prevent
catastrophic changes to our climate system and thus to societies around
the world: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes the 5th anniversary of the adoption of the
Paris Agreement;
(2) acknowledges that it is the responsibility of humankind
to address the severe and global impacts of climate change;
(3) supports global efforts that will keep global warming
below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), including
reduction of greenhouse gas emissions;
(4) supports global efforts, including increasing the
ambition of current climate financing goals, to protect those
most vulnerable to the effects of climate change;
(5) supports policies at the Federal, State, and local
levels that promote the reduction of greenhouse gas pollution
and aim to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement; and
(6) recommends that the United States rejoins the Paris
Agreement.
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Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
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