AUSTIN – The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s (TPPF) Kathleen Hartnett White, distinguished senior fellow-in-residence and director of the Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment and Doug Domenech, director of the Fueling Freedom Project, issued the following statement on the decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denying the petition to stay the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan (CPP):
“The Clean Power Plan is perhaps the most expansive, damaging arrogation of power by a federal agency in U.S. history,” said White. “Denying the pleas of over half of the states merely to halt the rule’s timeline until full judicial review is complete is only understandable as a politicized ruling to preserve the legal life of the Clean Power Plan which the President claims enabled him to lead the world to a global agreement on climate. Thousands of Americans have already lost their jobs and major energy companies have filed for bankruptcy even before the rule was adopted. The court’s ruling will amplify and accelerate the loss.”
“This is not a win for the EPA,” said Domenech. “The denial of a stay is not a decision on the merits. The decision does not change the EPA’s declarations in court filings, the final rule, and guidance documents that states do not have to develop plans in 2016. All they have to do is begin the process of analyzing the rule in order to get a two-year extension. We knew all along the case would have to be decided by Supreme Court; the EPA and their illegal carbon rule has a long way before its legality is determined. It is costly, makes no measurable difference to the climate, and will hurt middle and low income families least able to pay the higher cost for electricity.”
To schedule an interview with Ms. White or Mr. Domenech, please contact Caroline Espinosa at [email protected] or 512-472-2700.
The Honorable Kathleen Hartnett White is a distinguished senior fellow-in-residence and the director of the Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment. Former Chairman for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (2001-2007).
The Honorable Doug Domenech is Director of the Fueling Freedom Project at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Domenech most recently served as Secretary of Natural Resources for the Commonwealth of Virginia and served as White House Liaison and deputy chief of staff at the U.S. Department of the Interior.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin, Texas.