EPA Impoverishing Seniors

The American people registered their disapproval of President Obama’s policies in the midterm elections. This means EPA’s proposal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in new and existing power plants needs to be entirely re-evaluated with a commonsense approach.

Congress and this administration need to take into account the adverse financial impact upon millions on fixed and lower incomes who are already suffering from rising electricity costs and decreased reliability from past EPA regulations, and will face even more cost increases and electricity failures from these proposed regulations.

EPA should not continue to gloss over the fact that all Americans have been paying for years for increased costs of electricity due to environmental regulations and will pay an even heftier price for the proposed regulations — again, hurting those most vulnerable, including seniors. Sadly, many seniors just getting by on Social Security and limited, if any, retirement income will be forced to choose between heat during cold winter months and money for food and medicine.

Electric bills will again inevitably increase. Last winter, the great majority of increased demand during the polar vortex was supplied by coal-fired plants, but many are slated for closure in the next two years due to other EPA regulations. EPA’s latest proposal could finally push our grid over the edge by taking more plants offline and putting Pennsylvania’s electricity system at risk of failing.

We need to continue environmental progress without threatening seniors and all on modest incomes with economic hardship at the hands of the president’s EPA.

Dan Weber

Bohemia, N.Y.

The writer is president of the Association of Mature American Citizens (amac.us).

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