Press Releases

Today, U.S. Congressman Paul A. Gosar, D.D.S. (AZ-04) released the following statement after spearheading a bipartisan letter (click here to read) to Administrator Gina McCarthy regarding public hearings held by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) during the week of July 28^th on new proposed regulations for existing power plants:

“The public hearings conducted by the EPA in order to get feedback about their new and extreme environmental proposals for current power plants took place in Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Denver, and Pittsburgh. These cities are large urban areas, several of which are hundreds of miles from the communities that will be most impacted by this flawed proposal. It is deplorable that the EPA has not scheduled public hearings in communities that will lose thousands of jobs if these overreaching regulations are adopted.

“In the letter sent to Administrator McCarthy, my colleagues and I demanded the EPA hold additional public hearings in states like West Virginia, Kentucky, Wyoming, Texas, Alabama and Arizona, to hear from hardworking Americans who are already struggling to survive on thin margins and will be hit hardest by these burdensome new requirements. The Administration has a responsibility to engage, inform, and most importantly, listen to these very citizens. These limited hearings, however, fail to address this responsibility. 

“The reduction mandates put forth in the EPA’s proposal are not only unrealistic, but will also cause significant job losses and be extremely detrimental to economic growth throughout the nation. American families are projected to lose almost $600 billion in disposable income as a result of this new proposed rule. All of this economic harm and destruction for our economy will only result in an estimated 1.8% reduction of global carbon-dioxide emissions by the year 2030.”

Background:

Congressman Gosar’s letter to EPA Administrator McCarthy was signed by twelve of his colleagues including Representatives David McKinley (R-WV), Bill Johnson (R-OH), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Walter Jones (R-NC), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Tim Griffin (R-AR), Rick Rahall (D-WV), Bob Latta (R-OH), Bob Gibs (R-OH), William Enyart (D-IL) and Matt Salmon (R-AZ).

The proposed EPA regulations will require existing power plants to cut their production by 30% over the next 15 years. The Partnership for a Better Energy Future, a coalition of business organizations representing over 80 percent of the U.S. economy, stated that in addition to significant legal questions regarding the proposed rule’s viability, the mandate is “fundamentally incompatible with numerous practical and technical aspects of America’s electricity system.

 ###