President Barack Obama's $3.55 trillion budget, which was unveiled on Thursday, includes his proposal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to climate change by selling all emission permits to industries. This plan differs from some members of Congress, including those in Obama's own Democratic Party, who are advocating for a portion of these permits to be given away initially to help ease the transition to a greener economy. Critics of the plan are concerned that charging companies for their carbon emissions could harm the struggling economy. The sale of all emission permits is expected to generate $646 billion in revenue in the first few years of the program. White House budget director Peter Orszag confirmed that there will be no changes to the climate proposal when more details of the budget request are released next week. During the previous presidential campaign, Obama expressed a preference for all emissions permits to be sold rather than given away. However, he has indicated a potential for flexibility on this issue. The Obama plan involves capping the amount of carbon dioxide emissions from various sources such as coal-fired power plants, oil refineries, cars, and other industrial and natural sources. Companies exceeding the limit would need to purchase emissions credits from companies emitting less. The director of the Congressional Budget Office emphasized that the purpose of a cap-and-trade system is to incentivize companies to reduce emissions. The CBO's David Elmendorf explained to the Senate Finance Committee that giving away allowances is essentially the same as selling them and donating the proceeds from the auction. Elmendorf stated that revenue from auctioning emissions could reach $1.2 trillion over a decade, resulting in higher prices for emitting companies. Some of the revenues from Obama's budget cap-and-trade plan are intended to be refunded to consumers to counteract this price increase. Elmendorf emphasized that the price increase is necessary to encourage a change in behavior, and while it can be distributed differently, it cannot be avoided entirely. A cap-and-trade bill, sponsored by Representative Henry Waxman, is making its way through Congress. Waxman, a California Democrat who chairs the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee, is pushing for the bill to be passed by the end of May. However, a senior Republican suggested that the bill could be delayed while the committee focuses on healthcare reform. Representative Joe Barton, a Texas Republican, mentioned in a Reuters interview that a delay could give Democrats more time to gather support for the climate change legislation. Some Democrats, such as Mike Doyle of Pennsylvania, believe that most of the emission permits needed by industry under a cap-and-trade plan will initially be given away rather than auctioned, possibly for the first 10 or 15 years of the program. President Obama has expressed a preference for controlling carbon emissions through legislation, but also has the option of using regulation to achieve the same goal. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced recently that greenhouse emissions pose a threat to human health and can therefore be controlled as a pollutant.