23Aug

Obama Hits the Gas on Regs

Groups that closely follow regulations are expecting the Obama administration to continue issuing controversial rules through the midterm elections, despite the political risk it could pose for Democrats. With time running out on President Obama’s second term, federal agencies are hitting the gas on a number of regulatory initiatives that are central to the White […]
21Aug

Picking Losers: EPA’s Costly Admissions

The legislation creating the Environmental Protection Agency does not contain any language bestowing responsibility for creating a new “investment plan” for America. Yet the EPA, empowered “to protect human health and the environment,” now admits its carbon regulations are less about pollution and more about investments in renewable energy. In a surprising moment of candor […]
18Aug

Coal Still Is Top Source of Electricity in U.S.; Where Does Your State Stand?

Since the first quarter of 2001, overall electricity generation from all fuel sources has risen 13% in the U.S. The main sources of that electricity have changed slightly. In 2014 more states use natural gas as their main fuel for electricity generation compared to 2001, while several fewer states use coal than at the start […]
11Aug

EPA Must Explain the Costs of its Rules Better, Federal Watchdog Says

The Environmental Protection Agency needs to do a better job explaining and disclosing the data it uses to determine the costs of proposed regulations, particularly those regarding climate change, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Monday. While the agency adhered to many of the guidelines outlined by the White House Office of Management […]
10Aug

Arizona Looks for Breathing Room in EPA’s Carbon-emission Goals (KTAR)

WASHINGTON — Arizona will ask federal regulators next week to rethink their June proposal that calls for the state to cut carbon emissions from power plants in half over the next 15 years. Officials with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality have scheduled a conference call with their counterparts in the Environmental Protection Agency in […]
05Aug

Oklahoma Attorney General, 11 Others Sue EPA over Proposed Carbon Rules (The Oklahoman)

Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt isn’t wasting any time when it comes to challenging proposed rules to cut carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired electric power plants. Pruitt joined attorneys general from 11 other states to file a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency on the proposed rules, which were released in early June. The attorneys […]
01Aug

Dueling Rallies Pit Jobs Against Air (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

They met at the intersection of Liberty Avenue and 10th Street, a sea of thousands of mine workers in camouflage and hundreds of environmental protesters, chanting competing slogans. “Hey, hey, EPA, don’t take our jobs away,” the miners cried. “No planet, no jobs,” the environmentalists shouted back. Standing between the two camps was Pittsburgh resident […]
01Aug

A Dozen States File Suit Against New Coal Rules (The New York Times)

WASHINGTON — Twelve states filed a lawsuit against the Obama administration on Friday seeking to block an Environmental Protection Agency proposal to regulate coal-fired power plants in an effort to stem climate change. The plaintiffs are led by West Virginia and include states that are home to some of the largest producers of coal and […]
31Jul

EPA Emissions Plan Draws Protest in Pittsburgh (Wall Street Journal)

Several thousand unionized coal miners, electrical workers and others filled Pittsburgh’s downtown on Thursday to protest the Obama administration’s proposed rule to curb carbon emissions from the nation’s power plants, ahead of two days of hearings on the issue in the city. But in an indication of how the issue has divided the labor movement, […]
31Jul

Adoption of the EPA’s New Pollution Rule Will Cost Pennsylvania Jobs (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Starting today, the Environmental Protection Agency is holding public hearings in Pittsburgh regarding a proposed rule for greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants. This far-reaching “climate rule” is going to drive up the cost of energy in Pennsylvania and in every state in America, a fact that even President Barack Obama has acknowledged. Everyone […]