Pact to Phase Down Hydrofluorocarbons Advanced by US Senate Panel

A group of unidentified delegates have a discussion during a break at the official opening of the 28th Meeting of the Parties to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer in Kigali, Rwanda, on Oct. 13, 2016. AP Photo

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted on May 4 to advance the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, moving the United States closer to formalizing the phasedown of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) already included in the 2020 American Innovation and Manufacturing Act (AIM).

The AIM Act was passed as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and signed into law by President Trump on Dec. 28, 2020. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has already moved ahead with the reduction in HFC consumption and production, with EPA Administrator Michael Regan issuing a rule based on AIM in September 2021.