Blunt wants answers from White House regarding Social Cost of Carbon

U. S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) teamed with Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and a number of fellow legislators on Monday to pen a letter to Howard A. Shelanski, administrator for the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, questioning the transparency of the Obama Administration and demanding answers regarding the Social Cost of Carbon (SCC).

The White House hired an Interagency Group to develop data for the SCC last year. The comment period on the SCC has been closed for 12 months, and the Obama Administration has yet to respond to any requests for public information on the group.

“Congress and the American people deserve greater transparency and government accountability regarding the social cost of carbon (SCC) — a theoretical measure of climate change damages the Administration uses to justify onerous regulations,” the senators said in the letter. “The estimates were developed by a secretive Interagency Working Group (IWG) absent notice or public participation.”

In addition to several direct and specific questions in the letter, which they must answer by March 30, the senators requested that the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs act on its requirement to be fully responsive to the public and Congress on the issue going forward.

“While we continue to have significant concerns over the process establishing and the substance underlying the SCC, public information on the estimates is paramount given its increasing application to federal—and state—programs,” the letter stated.