John Kostyack, executive director of the National Wildlife Federation’s Wildlife Conservation and Global Warming National Advocacy Center, presents a brief analysis of the Kerry-Lieberman bill. Kostyack remains positive about the strong wildlife and natural resources provisions in  the bill but emphasizes the need and opportunity to close the funding gap in the coming weeks.

Kostyack explains that the draft legislation makes substantial funding available for natural resources adaptation if the Senate makes this issue a priority. For example, during the period in which natural resources adaptation receives no share of allowance value (2012 through 2018), the oil industry receives a share of allowance value ranging from 3.75 to 4.3 percent. If just half of this money were shifted to natural resources adaptation, roughly $10 billion would be available during this seven-year period for protecting threatened U.S. species and ecosystems rather than the oil industry. Read complete bill.