Congressman Jerry Moran, on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009, introduced legislation to rescind an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that would make carbon dioxide and five other greenhouse gases a danger to public health and welfare.
The December 7, 2009, EPA regulation allows the agency to put limits on greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act without the consent of Congress.
“The EPA must be stopped from making decisions that circumvent Congress and are not supported by current law,” Moran said. “The Clean Air Act was never intended to regulate greenhouse gases and proceeding with this rule would have devastating effects on the economy. EPA-imposed regulations would prove more costly than the cap and trade bill I opposed in June. With the highest unemployment in a quarter century, the last thing Americans need is more bureaucratic red tape and fees that would destroy more jobs.”
Moran’s legislation invalidates the EPA rule and prevents the agency from issuing a similar regulation on greenhouse gas emissions unless Congress passes a subsequent law authorizing such a regulation.
The legislation, known as a disapproval resolution, is a procedure authorized under the Congressional Review Act of 1996.
The Act provides a process through which Congress can invalidate regulations it believes exceed an agency’s authority.
Moran also sponsored legislation earlier this year that would prohibit carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases from being classified as air pollutants under the Clean Air Act.
