Yesterday, the Storing CO2 and Lowering Emissions (SCALE) Act was introduced in both the Senate and House.
In the Senate, the bill was led by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and was cosponsored by Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), John Hoeven (R-ND), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Mike Braun (R-IN), Jon Tester (D-MT), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Joe Manchin (D-WV).
In the House, the bill was led by Representatives Marc Veasey (D-TX) and David McKinley (R-WV), and cosponsored by Cheri Bustos (D-IL), Pete Stauber (R-MN), Terri Sewell (D-AL), and Liz Cheney (R-WY).
The SCALE Act would make critical investments in the CO2 transport and storage infrastructure necessary to develop a CCUS industry at scale in the United States. Specifically, the bill would:
- Create Secure Geologic Storage Infrastructure Development Program building upon the CarbonSAFE program to provide DOE cost share for commercial CO2 storage hubs.
- Provide EPA with increased funding for permitting Class VI CO2 storage wells, and grants for states to establish their own Class VI permitting programs, to ensure rigorous and efficient permitting of CO2 storage infrastructure.
- Establish the CO2 Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (CIFIA) program to finance shared CO2 transport infrastructure. Modeled on the TIFIA and WIFIA programs for highway and water infrastructure, CIFIA will provide flexible, low-interest loans for CO2 transport infrastructure projects and grants for initial excess capacity on new infrastructure to facilitate future growth. Also includes grants for Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) studies for CO2 transport infrastructure.
- Provide grants for state and local governments to procure CO2 utilization products for infrastructure projects, and support state and local programs that create demand for materials, fuels and other products made from captured carbon. The bill also adds the objective of developing standards and certifications for products that use CO2 to DOE’s carbon utilization program.
CURC commends Senators Coons and Cassidy, Representatives Veasey and McKinley, and all of the bicameral cosponsors for the leadership on this critical legislation. CURC Executive Director Shannon Angielski issued the following statement in support of the SCALE Act:
“CURC congratulates Congressmen Veasey and McKinley and Senators Coons and Cassidy on the bipartisan, bicameral introduction of the Storing CO2 and Lowering Emissions (SCALE) Act. When combined with the Section 45Q tax credit, the policies included in the SCALE Act would support commercial-scale deployment of carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) projects by overcoming barriers against the buildout of critical CO2 transport and storage infrastructure in the United States. Infrastructure to transport and store CO2 from industrial sources is also imperative to deliver on the substantial environmental benefits that can be provided by CCUS, which energy and climate authorities project will have a substantial role if domestic and global decarbonization objectives are to be achieved.”