NE Washington News

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials Subcommittee Chair Buddy Carter (R-GA) expressed their concerns over the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) new rules affecting the power sector, stating that these regulations will have severe repercussions for U.S. energy reliability.

In a joint statement, Rodgers and Carter criticized the EPA's actions, saying, "The EPA’s rush to dismantle our nation’s baseload electricity generation will harm people’s lives and well-being. These policies undermine American energy security by forcing states to fundamentally change how they generate electricity. At a time when more than half the nation is at elevated risk of forced blackouts, the administration’s unrelenting rush-to-green agenda is shutting down the types of generation needed to keep the lights on and raising costs across the board. We should be strengthening and expanding reliable power generation to build on America’s legacy of energy security and leadership, rather than dismantling it."

The Energy and Commerce Committee had previously addressed the issue, holding hearings on the harmful impact of the EPA's Clean Power Plan 2.0 (CPP2.0) on America's energy security and grid reliability. Chair Rodgers had taken proactive steps, including leading a letter to the EPA from all Energy and Commerce Republicans on the agency's CPP2.0 and calling for an extension of the comment period for the new CPP2.0 proposal.

Furthermore, Chair Rodgers, along with other committee members, sent letters to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and EPA Administrator Michael Regan, highlighting the detrimental effects of the new EPA regulations on the U.S. electric grid and urging the withdrawal of the overreaching CPP2.0 proposal.

The concerns raised by Rodgers and Carter underscore a growing unease within the energy sector regarding the impact of EPA regulations on American energy reliability and security. As the debate continues, stakeholders and policymakers will need to navigate a complex landscape to ensure a balance between environmental goals and the stability of the nation's energy infrastructure.