Several Bills Introduced to Block EPA Climate Rules

In recent days, several Senate and House Republicans introduced bills to limit or prevent the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) authority in climate change matters. Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced broad legislation that would prevent the EPA from regulating greenhouse gases (GHG) in any of its actions to address climate change. According to Barrasso, controlling emissions would harm the economy and stifle job growth. The bill would forbid the use of landmark federal legislation such as the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act to implement laws concerning climate change. It would also overturn the EPA’s 2009 finding that carbon dioxide (CO2) and other GHGs pose a threat to public and environmental health. The bill included one concession to allow new vehicle emissions standards to go forward, but it would shift the responsibility of managing them to the Department of Transportation. As of February 4, the bill has ten Republican co-sponsors.

Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman, also released draft legislation that would prohibit the EPA from regulating GHGs under the Clean Air Act. Officials said that the bill would nullify the EPA’s finding that GHGs are a danger to public health, and strip the agency of the authority to use the law in any future attempts to regulate emissions from polluting firms.

In a less aggressive measure to block federal climate rules, Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) introduced a bill to delay the EPA’s authority to regulate GHG emissions for two years. Rockefeller’s bill was co-sponsored by six Democrats.

Sens. John Kerry (D-MA), Robert Menendez (D-NJ), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) issued a response to Sen. John Barrasso’s (R-WY) bill to restrict the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from regulating greenhouse gases (GHGs). In a press release, Sen. Kerry remarked that the attempted legislation encouraged the outsourcing of jobs and placed the health of the public at risk. Kerry’s concern over public health was echoed by Sens. Menendez and Whitehouse, as they both highlighted that the bills were about “tying EPA’s hands to help polluters.” Whitehouse touched on creating green jobs, encouraging energy efficiency, and getting rid of air pollution, and expressed his interest in promoting public health and creating jobs. Sen. Sanders accused the Republicans of trying to put the EPA out of business, make the United States more dependent on fossil fuels, and roll back clean air protections; he urged that the bill be stopped in its “Big Oil tracks.” Meanwhile, speaking on the cluster of recently filed anti-EPA bills, the Obama administration reiterated its threat to veto any legislation that would hamstring the EPA’s ability to regulate GHG pollution.

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