Kaptur Leads Letter to President Biden Urging Further Consideration of Proposed Power Plant Emission Rule’s Impact on Jobs, Electricity Affordability and Reliability
Rural, low-income, and underserved communities’ access to reliable and affordable electricity must be preserved while achieving climate goals
Toledo, OH – RealEstateRama – Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), along with Congresswoman Mary Peltola (AK-AL), Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02), Congressman Henry Cuellar (TX-28), and Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34), wrote to President Biden to recommend that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) undertake additional analysis to ensure that the final Section 111 rule regulating power plant emissions does not jeopardize access to affordable and reliable electricity for our nation’s most vulnerable communities.
“I agree with President Biden and EPA Administrator Regan that emissions from the power sector must be curbed to combat climate change,” said Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development. “However, I remain concerned that the EPA’s proposed power plant emissions rule does not adequately account for impacts to electricity affordability and reliability and the impact on the working people who have spent their lives ensuring affordable, safe power for America’s Heartland. Rural, low-income, and underserved communities in the Great Lakes Region, including many in my district, are only now recovering economically from decades of harmful trade policies. Continued access to reliable and affordable electricity is critical to further economic recovery and job growth. What’s more, many of my constituents already struggle to pay bills for basic services including water and electricity. Achieving climate goals cannot come at the expense of hard-working Ohioans and Americans striving to build better lives for themselves and their families. We need a rule that is good for families, and good for workers, which is why we are proud to have the support of a broad coalition including the National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, the American Public Power Association, the United Mine Workers of America, and the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers.”
In May 2023, EPA released a proposed rule under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act that would require new and existing coal- and gas-fired power plants to capture their CO2 emissions by 2040 by implementing technologies that are expensive and currently not widely used. Following letters from Congresswoman Kaptur and other House and Senate Democrats in December 2023 expressing concerns about the proposed rule’s impact on electricity affordability and reliability, EPA announced plans to exclude existing gas-fired power plants from the final rule. However, recent reports suggest EPA is now considering significantly strengthening the rule’s requirements for new gas-fired power plants, raising questions as to how the nation’s utility companies will meet surging demand for electricity in the coming years. Today’s letter urges President Biden to ensure that the regulatory impact analysis adequately accounts for all costs associated with the rule and to prepare an updated reliability assessment before finalizing the rule.
The letter is supported by the National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, the American Public Power Association, the United Mine Workers of America, and the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers.
Today’s letter to President Biden can be found by clicking here. You can find Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Congressman Don Davis (NC-01), Congressman Wiley Nickel (NC-13), Congressman Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Congressman Vicente Gonzalez (TX-34), Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02), and Congressman Jared Moskowitz (FL-23) December letter to EPA Administrator Regan by clicking here.
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