The federal government would be barred from factoring the social costs of carbon, methane and nitrous oxide in the rulemaking process under legislation recently introduced by U.S. Rep. Evan Jenkins (R-WV).
The Transparency and Honesty in Energy Regulations Act would also ensure that the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Energy and other agencies comply with Office of Budget and Management guidelines regarding energy and environmental rulemaking.
“The Obama administration used biased estimates like the social cost of carbon to push through its anti-coal regulations,” Jenkins said. “These models hide the true economic costs of the EPA’s energy and environmental rules, which have eliminated jobs in West Virginia and raised the price of electricity for families.”
President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order prohibiting the federal government from considering the social costs of carbon, methane and nitrous oxide in rulemaking. Jenkins’ bill, however, would ensure that future administrations aren’t able to change course without congressional approval.
“I appreciate that President Trump has put an immediate stop to these damaging regulations, and this legislation will ensure that no future administration can hide behind flawed metrics to justify their regulations,” Jenkins said.
U.S. Reps. Rob Bishop (R-UT), Tom Cole (R-OK), Bill Flores (R-TX), Darin LaHood (R-IL) and Steve Womack (R-AR) are among the House bill’s original cosponsors. U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) is among the Senate bill’s original cosponsors.