MARKET CHOICE Act
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Commodity Exchanges, Energy, and Credit.
Modernizing America with Rebuilding to Kickstart the Economy of the Twenty-first Century with a Historic Infrastructure-Centered Expansion Act or the MARKET CHOICE Act
This bill imposes a tax on the greenhouse gas emissions of fossil fuels, certain industrial processes, and certain product uses.
The bill appropriates and transfers specified revenue from the tax to a Rebuilding Infrastructure and Solutions for the Environment Trust Fund established by the bill. Specified amounts in the trust fund shall be available, as provided by appropriations Acts, for the federal Highway Trust Fund, grants to low-income households; and other specified energy, environmental, infrastructure, and research and development priorities.
The bill also
eliminates the federal gas tax,
imposes a moratorium on finalizing and enforcing certain Clean Air Act regulations on greenhouse gas emissions, and
establishes a National Climate Commission to review policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The moratorium on regulations expires in 2033 if specified emission targets are not reached.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on July 23, 2018. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on August 16, 2018: Referred to the Subcommittee on Commodity Exchanges, Energy, and Credit.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 115th Congress (2017-18), 442 of the 11,421 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) introduced it on July 23, 2018, and 2 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 2 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 23, 2018, 2971 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 2947 days ago, on August 16, 2018.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 115th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2019 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers