U.S. Senators John Boozman of Arkansas and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, who chairs the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, have sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin supporting his efforts to repeal regulations proposed under the Biden-Harris Clean Power Plan 2.0.
The senators argue that the Clean Power Plan 2.0 could threaten energy reliability in the United States by causing power plant retirements based on policy rather than practicality. They assert that repealing these rules is necessary for American energy providers to continue delivering affordable and reliable utilities to communities and businesses.
They also claim that the Biden-Harris administration’s regulations overstep EPA authority and disregard the Supreme Court’s decision in West Virginia v. EPA. The senators stated their agreement with the agency’s proposal to repeal these standards.
“Our nation currently needs more reliable and affordable electricity to power our economy, maintain our economic competitiveness, and win the Artificial Intelligence race. The current regulations – that your proposal will repeal – put us at risk by exacerbating electric reliability threats and spiking energy costs borne by American families and businesses,” wrote the senators.
“The repeal of these standards is the first step on a path to improved energy affordability and securing the reliability of our electric grid. We appreciate your leadership to restore American energy dominance and we request the EPA expeditiously finalize the proposed rule as a central effort to achieve that goal,” they concluded.
All Republican members of the EPW committee joined Boozman and Capito in signing this letter, including Senators Kevin Cramer, Cynthia Lummis, John Curtis, Lindsey Graham, Dan Sullivan, Pete Ricketts, Roger Wicker, and Jon Husted.
The full text of their letter can be accessed online.
