U.S. Aircraft Operators Possibly One Step Closer To Avoiding EU-ETS Requirements: Senate Passes SB 1956

On Sept. 21, 2012, the U.S. Senate passed a bill (Senate Bill 1956) which, if signed into law, will give the Secretary of Transportation the authority to make it illegal for aircraft operators in the U.S. to comply with the European Union's (EU's) onerous Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). The EU's ETS requires U.S. aircraft operators to buy and surrender carbon credits for flights to the EU member nations. The requirement to buy and surrender carbon credits goes into effect March 31, 2013 - although, in the months and years before this compliance date, various EU member nations have required U.S. aircraft operators to submit annual emissions monitoring plans and reports and participate in a complicated multi-step process to open carbon credit trading accounts.