[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 22, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1302-S1307]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MAKING FURTHER CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2003
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will
return to the consideration of H.J. Res. 2, which the clerk will
report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A joint resolution (H.J. Res. 2) making further continuing
appropriations for the fiscal year 2003, and for other
purposes.
Pending:
Edwards amendment No. 67, to require a study of the final
rule relating to prevention of significant deterioration and
nonattainment new source review to determine the effects of
the final rule on air pollution and human health.
Dodd amendment No. 71, to provide additional funding for
part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Gregg amendment No. 78, to provide additional funding for
special education programs.
Dayton amendment No. 80, to amend the Homeland Security Act
of 2002 (Public Law 107-296) to provide that waivers of
certain prohibitions on contracts with corporate expatriates
shall apply only if the waiver is essential to the national
security.
Inhofe amendment No. 86 (to amendment No. 67) to provide
for a study by the National Academy of Sciences.
Reed amendment No. 40, to expand the Temporary Extended
Unemployment Compensation Act of 2002.
Nelson (Fl.) amendment No. 97, to make additional
appropriations for emergency relief activities.
amendment no. 86, as modified
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will now
resume consideration of amendment No. 86, with 10 minutes for debate to
be equally divided between the Senator from Oklahoma and the Senator
from North Carolina.
Under the previous order, that amendment is modified to become a
first-degree amendment.
The amendment, as modified, is as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert:
`` . (a) Cooperative Agreement.--As soon as practicable
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of
the Environmental Protection Agency shall enter into a
cooperative agreement with the National Academy of Sciences
to evaluate the impact of the final rule relating to
prevention of significant deterioration and nonattainment new
source review, published at 67 Fed. Reg. 80186 (December 31,
2002). The study shall include--
(1) increases or decreases in emissions of pollutants
regulated under the New Source Review program;
(2) impacts on human health;
(3) pollution control and prevention technologies installed
after the effective date of the rule at facilities covered
under the rulemaking;
(4) increases or decreases in efficiency of operations,
including energy efficiency, at covered facilities; and
(5) other relevant data.
[[Page S1303]]
(b) Deadline.--The NAS shall submit an interim report to
Congress no later than March 3, 2004, and shall submit a
final report on implementation of the rules.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. INHOFE. Let me acknowledge this is a little different than it was
yesterday. Yesterday, it was a second-degree amendment. To accommodate
both sides, we will have two first-degree amendments that we will
consider today.
Our leader talked about the unfinished business from last year. This
first amendment falls into that category. It actually was unfinished
business from the Clinton administration. I have a letter from Bob
Perciasepe, the clean air man, director for the Clinton administration,
saying at the last minute they were unable to get this completed. What
we are trying to do now is to complete this effort.
With that, I reserve the remainder of my time so we can hear from the
Senator from North Carolina.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, first, I yield a minute and a half to my
friend from Vermont, who has worked so hard on this issue.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Vermont.
Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I urge my colleagues to vote against the
Inhofe amendment and for the Edwards amendment. The Inhofe amendment
might appear to be a step in the right direction. It demonstrates our
legitimate concern that these NSR changes are bad for the environment,
bad for public health. It shows that these impacts deserve better
study.
Unfortunately, for that one step forward, the Inhofe amendment takes
two steps backward. The Inhofe amendment requires a study that should
have been completed long before the rules were finalized and certainly
before they become effective.
That is the whole point of Executive Order 12866. The Agency should
have done a comprehensive cost and benefit analysis of this
deregulation, because of the tremendous potential loss in health
benefits.
Instead, the Agency issued a warmed over version of its report to the
White House energy task force and called it analysis. That report is
simply propaganda to justify deregulating vast numbers of major sources
of pollution.
These final NSR rules are very different from the reforms proposed by
the Clinton administration. The differences warrant longer review and
consideration.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has consumed his minute and a
half.
Mr. EDWARDS. I yield the Senator another 30 seconds.
Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, we have tried to do that. But this
administration has fought us at every turn on this matter. They refuse
to share information that is our right to have.
The Inhofe amendment doesn't work. It would bar the door after the
horse has already left the barn. We need real public health and air
quality information before the rules take effect, not later, after the
damage is done.
That damage could be severe. Independent analysis for just a few
states--Florida, Virginia and Colorado--suggests that the rules would
allow new emissions of thousands of tons annually of smog or acid rain
causing pollutants.
There is one final note for Senators to consider--the potentially
large increases in pollution from these so-called NSR ``improvements''
will come back to haunt them. Other sources and sectors in
nonattainment areas, such as transportation, for instance, will have to
make up the difference in emissions that is necessary to achieve air
quality standards. It's a zero sum game.
Senators should first vote against the Inhofe amendment and then
support the Edwards-Lieberman-Jeffords amendment.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, we reserve the remainder of our time.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, let me make one point. The analysis that
was referred to by the Senator from Vermont as not being complete is
right here. It is 180 pages of analysis of all data that was available.
If they were to try to have the NAS do a further analysis, they would
have to go back and use this same data. This job has been done. This
has been delayed now for 10 years.
At this point I yield 2 minutes to the Senator from Missouri, Mr.
Bond.
Mr. BOND. Mr. President, the administration's New Source Review, or
NSR review, will benefit the environment. Right now companies face an
average delay of 8 months, sometimes as long as 18 months, to get an
NSR permit. Therefore, many companies avoid the process altogether.
That means that there are environmental losses because companies stick
with old, outdated technologies instead of the most modern, efficient
pollution control measures.
There is a specific example. EPA has done a plantwide application
limits, or PALS, test and the results are striking. Many companies have
multiple emissions from many different sources, including big to
extremely small pipes. If you tried to do it under the existing
framework, you would have to have a permit for each one. As a facility
wants to upgrade or modernize, they have go through a time-consuming
process but PALS allows a plant to calculate its total emissions from
all sources. As long as they stay below the plantwide total, they can
do it.
A striking example is at the DaimlerChrysler plant in Newark, DE,
where they make Dodge Durango trucks. They needed to upgrade their
process. They did it. PALS allowed them to make over 90 changes.
The environment was benefited. An amazing thing happened. With the
new flexibility, the plant was able to cut pollution in its painting
process, cut smog-forming volatile organic compounds and hazardous
plant pollutants. Plant managers cut 400 tons of air pollution from the
clean air process and cut paint odors by 50 percent.
We have auto assembly plants in Missouri. We make light trucks and
vans. I would love for my constituents to breathe cleaner air because
of the PALS program reforms. That is why the Clinton administration's
EPA, led by Carol Browner, supported the NSR reforms. We should and I
urge support for the Inhofe amendment and the defeat of the Edwards
amendment.
Mr. INHOFE. We reserve the remainder of our time.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, this administration has made new rules
that are the biggest rollback of clean air protections in history. The
amendment from me, Senator Lieberman, Senator Jeffords, Senator Reid,
Senator Daschle, and others says: Before the administration puts kids
with asthma and seniors with respiratory problems at risk, we ought to
take at least 6 months to see what effect it is going to have on their
health. In other words, what we are saying is let's look before we
leap.
The amendment from my friend from Oklahoma says exactly the opposite.
It says let's leap and then later we will look. What are we going to
say when the study that he is proposing is completed if, in fact, it
shows what all of us believe it is going to show now, which is that
this change will cause pollution, it is going to put kids with asthma
at risk, it is going to put senior citizens with serious respiratory
problems at risk? What are we going to say to them, those kids who have
had asthma attacks, seniors who have had serious heart or respiratory
problems as a result of these changes in the rules?
In other words, what the Inhofe amendment is suggesting is let's
pollute more now, study it, and when we find out we are wrong we will
go back and do something about it.
The responsible thing to do is to conduct a serious, quantitative
analysis so we can determine what impact this will have on kids and
what impact it will have on seniors' health before it has the force of
law.
This study that is referred to by my friend from Oklahoma could well
have been bought and paid for by the administration's own people. It is
called ``qualitative,'' which means it is guessing by political
appointees as opposed to serious analysis. The career officials within
the EPA itself have said that it is self-selecting and misleading. One
of the key States that is cited in the study has actually disavowed it.
The bottom line is this: The EPA has never scientifically studied and
modeled this issue. The one analysis that did do that, by private
consultants that the EPA has used in the past, says that these new
rules will cause 120 tons more pollution at just two factories.
[[Page S1304]]
We should not leap before we look. We need to see what impact this
will have on the health of kids and seniors. And all we are asking is 6
months.
I reserve the remainder of my time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The time of the Senator from North Carolina
time has expired. The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, how much time remains for both sides?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma controls a minute
and a half. The time has expired for the Senator from North Carolina.
Mr. INHOFE. First, let me comment that this amendment enjoys the
embrace and the support of virtually every organization of business or
labor unions in America. It was unanimously approved by the National
Governors Association, the Environmental Council of the States, the
National Black Chamber of Commerce, et cetera, and virtually every
labor union in America.
At this time I recognize the chairman of the clean air subcommittee,
the Senator from Ohio.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.
Mr. VOINOVICH. Mr. President, I think the arguments have been made
that this is about delaying something that has been looked at for over
the last 10 years. I hope my colleagues will decide this issue today on
a bipartisan basis, as was the letter that we sent to Administrator
Whitman, asking that she move forward with the new regulations to end
some 4 or 5 years of uncertainty by businesses throughout this country,
in terms of routine maintenance and repair of their facilities. This
vote for the Inhofe amendment is a vote for the environment. It will
allow us to move forward quickly, to do what should have been done
several years ago so these repairs and the maintenance can be done. We
can reduce the emissions and we can make these facilities more
efficient.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time has expired. The Senator from North
Carolina.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that each side be
given an additional minute.
Mr. STEVENS. I object. I am going to object to all requests for
extension of time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard. The question is on
agreeing to the amendment of the Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to
be a sufficient second. There is a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. REID. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs.
Feinstein), the Senator from Iowa (Mr. Harkin), the Senator from South
Carolina (Mr. Hollings), and the Senator from Hawaii (Mr. Inouye) are
necessarily absent.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber
desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 51, nays 45, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 11 Leg.]
YEAS--51
Alexander
Allard
Allen
Bennett
Bond
Breaux
Brownback
Bunning
Burns
Campbell
Chambliss
Cochran
Coleman
Cornyn
Craig
Crapo
DeWine
Dole
Domenici
Ensign
Enzi
Fitzgerald
Frist
Graham (SC)
Grassley
Hagel
Hatch
Hutchison
Inhofe
Kyl
Landrieu
Lincoln
Lott
Lugar
McConnell
Miller
Murkowski
Nelson (NE)
Nickles
Pryor
Roberts
Santorum
Sessions
Shelby
Smith
Specter
Stevens
Talent
Thomas
Voinovich
Warner
NAYS--45
Akaka
Baucus
Bayh
Biden
Bingaman
Boxer
Byrd
Cantwell
Carper
Chafee
Clinton
Collins
Conrad
Corzine
Daschle
Dayton
Dodd
Dorgan
Durbin
Edwards
Feingold
Graham (FL)
Gregg
Jeffords
Johnson
Kennedy
Kerry
Kohl
Lautenberg
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
McCain
Mikulski
Murray
Nelson (FL)
Reed
Reid
Rockefeller
Sarbanes
Schumer
Snowe
Stabenow
Sununu
Wyden
NOT VOTING--4
Feinstein
Harkin
Hollings
Inouye
The amendment (No. 86), as modified, was agreed to.
Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
Mr. SANTORUM. I move to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Amendment No. 67
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question now occurs on agreeing to the
amendment offered by the Senator from North Carolina. Under the
previous order, there will be a 10-minute rollcall vote. The Senator
from North Carolina.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that each side be
given 1 minute prior to the vote.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from North Carolina.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, the administration has proposed some of
the most dramatic changes in the Clean Air Act that have been made in
our history. All this amendment says is before we make these
significant changes, we take a serious look at a quantitative study of
what effect it is going to have on human health, particularly kids with
asthma and seniors with cardiorespiratory problems. Look before we
leap. It is that simple.
The studies that have been done have not been serious scientific
studies. There has not been any serious scientific study done to
support this rule. The only serious scientific studies say this rule
will cause significantly more pollution.
In addition to that, the Governors, although they support some kind
of reform, specifically do not support this reform, and so it is
critically important that Senators support this amendment for the sake
of our kids and for the sake of our seniors. Six months just to
determine what effect this will have on the health of our kids and our
seniors is a perfectly reasonable, responsible thing to do. I ask my
colleagues to vote for the amendment.
Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, I rise today on behalf of all those who
breathe and I want to thank the sponsors of this amendment for their
efforts. I say that half in jest, because I get the feeling that those
who are trying to weaken our clean air laws often forget why we passed
them in the first place--so we all can breathe cleaner, healthier air.
I certainly support the most efficient and effective regulations we can
devise to curb pollution, and I agree with the statement that the New
Source Review Program could use some reform, but we must not lose sight
of the fact that these rules are designed first and foremost to protect
public health.
The Bush administration has shifted priorities from protecting the
public to protecting polluters from doing their best. The Bush
administration is protecting special interests, rather than protecting
our environment and the public health. That is unacceptable and
threatens to reverse the progress we have made as a nation to protect
our citizens from health threats in the workplace and environment.
This is a serious issue for the people in my state of Delaware. We
live in a region that is in non-attainment with the Federal ozone
standard. Bottom line, we don't meet the current health-based
standards. But not all of our air pollution comes from industry in
Delaware. We could do everything right and still not be in compliance.
What our neighbors do and what industries do in other parts of the
country affects us and our ability to breathe clean air. If power
plants in Pennsylvania, Maryland or even West Virginia and Ohio aren't
required to do all they can to reduce harmful emissions, we pay the
price in higher respiratory illnesses and premature deaths,
particularly among children and the elderly. To me, that is all the
more reason that we should be tightening the rules, reducing emissions
from coal-fired power plants, instead of making it easier for the
utility companies.
But you know what is so surprising to me, what I just can't
understand--the administration has no data to even suggest that these
changes will improve air quality, nor have they conducted any analysis,
studies, anything. Show me that the changes will not cause a
deterioration in the quality of our air. Show me that children and the
elderly will not have to worry about being outside in the summer. Show
me that states like Delaware will benefit. And we, my colleagues in the
Senate and I, have asked . . . repeatedly!
[[Page S1305]]
That is why this amendment is so important. This amendment does two
things. First, it would prevent the implementation of the rule changes
prior to September 15, 2003. Second, it simply asks for a rigorous
analysis of the air pollution and public health impacts of the proposed
rule changes. The National Academy of Sciences would be tasked with
completing this study by August 15, 2003. Sure, it would have made
sense to do the analysis before the changes were published in the
Federal Register, but it is not too late.
I want to share briefly a success story from my state of Delaware
where we helped pioneer the Plantwide Applicability Limit, or so-called
PAL permit. PAL is an innovative approach where separate process
permitting requirements are consolidated in exchange for greater
pollution reductions. This allows flexibility for plant process
expansion and modification while saving businesses time and money. And
it works.
One permit Delaware helped pioneer was at DaimlerChrysler's Newark
Delaware Assembly Plant, where the Dodge Durango is manufactured. The
plant focuses primarily on vehicle coating--painting--and assembly of
parts produced at other DaimierChrysler facilities to produce finished
vehicles. Years ago, when it wanted to start producing the Durango, the
plant had to build a new state-of-the-art paint shop in a new building.
Permit applications for this new process triggered New Source Review
requirements for non-attainment areas. Working with the EPA, one of the
first ever PAL permits was issued to the plant in 1996. And, the
permit, the first of its kind for the automotive industry, was issued
in 99 days. The plant continues to operate under this flexible permit
and, as an added benefit, has saved Chrysler $13 million in increased
productivity and pollution prevention. This was a win-win situation.
Chrysler won with a permit that gave them flexibility to meet
production needs and Delaware citizens won through reduced air
pollution. Not surprising, Delaware does not believe it could repeat
the pollution prevention performance of the PAL permit it issued under
the new rule and is opposing the reform proposal.
I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. Give us 6 months to
find out. Send the right message. Let's not forget that these rules are
designed to protect public health, not to protect industry from
fulfilling its civic duty. Let's not reverse the progress we have made
over the past three decades.
Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, today I voted in favor of the Edwards
amendment requiring a 6-month delay in four New Source Review, NSR,
rules so that a study by the National Academy of Sciences, NAS, could
be carried out. I support a commonsense approach to making air quality
improvements while also increasing our economic growth. I have long
been a supporter of the steel, coal, chemical, forestry, and other
interests in my State. Still, the Edwards amendment, requiring a short
6-month delay with a study regarding the health and environmental
impacts of these four rules, was imperative in my mind. Evidence of
this administration's intransigence is ubiquitous across the many
agencies. Congress has the right and responsibility to get important
information in order to make more informed decisions. A better
understanding of the health and environmental impacts of these new
rules is an important part of that decisionmaking process.
When the Clean Air Act was amended in 1977, Congress established the
NSR program to prevent serious deterioration in the Nation's air
quality. The intention of this program was to strike a delicate balance
between making important improvements in the Nation's air quality while
also allowing existing factories, powerplants, and other facilities to
meet our changing energy, economic, and social needs.
Over the years, it has become evident that these NSR regulations are
very complicated requiring many thousands of pages of guidance. This
red tape has led to much industry uncertainty and litigation. For a
number of years, the EPA has been examining and documenting these
problems, and the NSR program is in need of reform. Even as we must
maintain our air quality, NSR should not be an impediment to making
commonsense improvements at industrial facilities.
However, Members of Congress have made numerous requests of the
administration regarding its justifications for promulgating these new
rules. Unfortunately, the Environmental Protection Agency has not
adequately responded to these congressional requests for information on
the potential impacts of these NSR reforms. While I do not support
efforts to halt this important reform effort, I believe that this
administration must be more responsive to the interests of Congress so
that the public has a more complete understanding of these issues and
their effect on our Nation.
Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I joined Senators Edwards and Lieberman
as a cosponsor of their amendment to delay implementation of the Bush
administration's proposed weakening of the Clean Air Act. This
amendment would delay implementation of the regulations for 6 months
while the National Academy of Sciences conducts an analysis on the
effects of the rules on public health and the environment.
On December 31, 2002, the Bush administration finalized the most
significant weakening of the clean air protections since the Clean Air
Act was adopted 30 years ago. These changes would allow increased
levels of pollution at 17,000 industrial facilities across the Nation.
More than 170 million Americans live in areas with unhealthy air
quality. Air pollution is a serious public health problem, particularly
among children and senior citizens.
Mounting medical evidence shows that air pollution causes asthma
attacks, heart and lung disease, and premature death. More than 1,000
physicians from across the Nation urged the administration to halt its
proposed weakening of the Clean Air Act. In a September 27, 2002 letter
to the administration, the physicians said, ``It is irresponsible for
the Environmental Protection Agency to move forward and finalize new
regulations that could have a negative impact on human health.''
For 2 years, the Environment and Public Works Committee, Judiciary
Committee and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee have
issued more than a dozen requests for documents and an analysis from
the administration on the public health impacts of the clean air
changes. The administration ignored these requests.
Many states have objected to the clean air changes. The State and
Territorial Air Pollution Program administrators have asked for a 1-
year delay to assess the new regulations. Twelve States, including my
State of South Dakota, face a March 3 deadline to comply with the new
regulations. We hear so much from the administration about working with
states but in this case the administration turned its back on South
Dakota and 11 other States, that are simply asking for more time to
understand these regulations. In a January 16, 2003 letter to EPA
Administrator Christine Whitman, the State and local air administrators
said, ``State and local air pollution control agencies have been
working vigorously to study the new rule. However, gaining full command
of the many intricacies of the regulation, as well as complete
understanding of the impacts and implications, will take time and, we
firmly believe, cannot be accomplished in the next 45 days.''
This amendment makes a very simple requirement: before these sweeping
regulations are put into place, the National Academy of Sciences should
conduct an objective study of the effects these rules would have on
public health and the environment. I strongly urge my colleagues to
vote for this amendment.
Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, I was pleased today to vote in support
of the Edwards-Lieberman amendment, which I was proud to cosponsor with
my colleague Senator Jeffords and others. Unfortunately, this effort to
temporarily halt the Bush administration's weakening of the Clean Air
Act was narrowly defeated. Although we were simply trying to obtain an
independent, scientific analysis of the impact of these Clean Air Act
changes before they went into effect, rather than after, the amendment
was opposed by half of the Senate.
Just shy of passage, this vote was a very strong showing of
bipartisan support of protecting clean air and ensuring healthy
communities, and against
[[Page S1306]]
any backsliding on the Clean Air Act. And it was not by any means the
end of this debate. We will not give up this fight to stop any
weakening of existing Clean Air Act protections and to ensure that all
Americans have clean, healthy air to breathe.
Many believe that the Clean Air Act changes the Bush administration
has made, and which go into effect in less than 6 weeks, will allow
more pollution into our air, not less. More pollution that is known,
scientifically and medically proven, to cause or contribute to asthma
attacks, heart attacks, cardiopulmonary disease, cancer, and even
premature death. More pollution that is making people sick, especially
children and the elderly.
That is why my colleagues and I were seeking 6 months for the
National Academy of Sciences to conduct an independent, scientific
analysis of the Bush administration's changes to the New Source Review,
NSR, provisions of the Clean Air Act before they went into effect, to
ensure that they would not negatively impact air quality or public
health. The reason we are seeking such a study is simple, it's a matter
of public health and, in some cases, life and death.
Just last week, The New York Times reported the findings of a study
by scientists at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.
The study, to be published next month in the journal Environmental
Health Perspectives, finds that ``pollutants in the air in Upper
Manhattan and the South Bronx have been linked to lower birth weights
and smaller skulls in African-American babies.'' The study's findings
are particularly troubling because lower birth weights and smaller
skulls have been linked to poor physical and mental health later in
life, including lower IQs and poor cognitive function.
This particular study is being conducted at the Center for Children's
Environmental Health, which is currently being funded by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, and the National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences. Unfortunately, the EPA wants to reduce
funding for these Children's Environmental Health Centers around the
country. But that is another matter.
The point is that air pollution is scientifically proven to have
negative health impacts--particularly on children. Other studies show
that children who play sports in communities with high average air
pollution levels have a higher risk of developing respiratory illness,
and that children who live in polluted areas have a 10 percent lower
lung function growth rate compared to those who live in less polluted
areas.
Pound for pound, children breathe more air than adults, which makes
them more susceptible to air pollution. But we are all at risk.
That is why we need to be doing more--not less--to clean up our air,
protect children's health, and provide for safe and health communities.
Today, about 175 million Americans live in areas violating health
standards for smog or soot. That is unacceptable. And that is why we
need to be applying the Clean Air Act to its utmost and keeping it as
strong an environmental statute as possible.
We offered this amendment today because we are concerned that the
changes the Administration has made to the NSR provisions of the Clean
Air Act will do the exact opposite. We believe, as do many others, that
these changes will allow more pollution into our air, not less.
That is why 1,000 doctors, nurses, and public health professional
from all over the country wrote to John Graham, Director of the Office
of Information and Regulatory Affairs at the White House, last
September to ask him to block these changes that they believed would
weaken the Clean Air Act. In their letter, these health professionals
said, ``Pollution . . . regulated under NSR touches the lives of
millions of Americans across the Nation. This pollution is harmful to
human health and sends thousands of individuals to hospital emergency
rooms each month. Study after study shows a link between exposure to
air pollution and health conditions such as respiratory diseases,
asthma attacks, cardiopulmanory disease, cancer, and even death. No
changes to NSR should occur without the public being provided with a
comprehensive analysis demonstrating that the proposed changes to NSR
will improve air quality and human health.''
That is essentially what this amendment called for--an independent,
scientific study by the National Academy of Sciences to determine
whether the Administration's changes to NSR could result in any
increase in air pollution or any adverse effect on human health. By
waiting just a few months, we could make certain that these rule
changes would not increase pollution or negatively impact human health.
We are saying, ``Don't take us at our word. Don't take the words of
these thousand health care providers. Let's let the scientists tell us
what the impacts of these changes will be.'' Unfortunately, some of our
colleagues would rather allow the Bush Administration changes to go
forward, and then do the study after the fact to see what impacts we
experience on air quality and human health. If there are negative
impacts, which we think there will be, we may be able to pull back the
rule at a later date. But we will not be able to pull back any air
pollution that is released, or any hospitalizations, asthma attacks,
heart attacks, or other health impacts that occur as a result.
This is not the way the process is supposed to work. We are supposed
to know, before we go forward with any rulemaking, what the impacts of
that rulemaking will be. And we have asked, repeatedly, for such
information from the administration, to no avail. Which is why we
offered this amendment today.
When the Congress passed the Clean Air Act and President Nixon signed
the Act into law back in 1970, the intent was to reduce air pollution
and protect public health. As section 101(b) of the Clean Air Act
states, one of the purposes of the Act is ``to protect and enhance the
quality of the Nation's air resources so as to promote the public
health and welfare.''
All we were trying to do today, and what we will be continuing to
fight for, is to ensure that the purpose of the Clean Air Act is
upheld. I don't think this is too much to ask.
Especially when in testimony before the Senate, former EPA
Administrator Carol Browner stated, ``There is no guarantee, and more
importantly, no evidence or disclosure demonstrating that the
administration's announced final or proposed changes will make the air
cleaner. In fact they will allow the air to become dirtier.''
Especially when EPA, in its own Supplemental Analysis of the
Environmental Impact of the 2002 Final NSR Improvement Rules, dated
November 21, 2002, states ``. . . the EPA cannot quantify with
specificity the emissions changes for a given pollutant or pollutants,
if any, that result from the NSR rule changes now being adopted, nor
can we reliably determine the anticipated locations of any emissions
changes.''
Especially when, despite numerous requests from the Environment and
Public Works Committee, and from more than 40 of our colleagues in the
Senate, the EPA has failed to provide us with definitive evidence that
shows that these final changes to the NSR provisions of the Clean Air
Act will not have a negative impact on air quality or on human health.
A few months for independent, scientific certainty that these rule
changes will improve air quality and not adversely effect human health.
It is not too much to ask.
In fact, just last week, the State and Territorial Air Pollution
Program Administrators and the Association of Local Air Pollution
Control Officials wrote to EPA Administrator Whitman and asked that the
effective date of the final NSR rule revision be delayed by a whole
year. Their letter reads, ``As you are aware, the State and Territorial
Air Pollution Program Administrators, STAPPA, and the Association of
Local Air Pollution Control Officials, ALAPCO, have serious concerns
with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's, EPA's, recently
promulgated final rule affecting changes to the New Source Review, NSR,
program, 67 Federal Register 80186, and with the adverse impact these
changes would likely have on the ability of States and localities to
achieve and sustain clean, healthful air. These concerns are further
compounded by the fact that, for a number of States across the country,
the revised NSR program is scheduled to take effect on March 3, 2003.
Accordingly, we write to you today, on behalf
[[Page S1307]]
of STAPPA and ALAPCO, to request that EPA extend by 1 year the
effective date of the final NSR rule revisions.''
These same State, territorial, and local air officials, which have
gone on record in support of changes to NSR, believe that ``the
administration has gone too far in revamping the program'' and that
``because the reforms are mandatory, they will impede, or even
preclude, the ability of States and localities all across the country
to retain or adopt programs that are more protective than the Federal
requirements.''
That is in part why the Attorneys General from nine States are suing
the Federal Government over these changes. Whereas the existing NSR
program was the foundation for a series of lawsuits brought by the
States, the Federal Government and environment groups against dozens of
old, coal-fired powerplants and other industrial sources, the tables
are now turned.
Now, the Attorneys General from nine States, New York, Connecticut,
Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode
Island, and Vermont, have had to file a lawsuit against the Federal
Government, challenging these new regulations. The very regulations
that the States had been using in conjunction with the Federal
Government to go after bad actors and improve air quality.
Some of us will join in that lawsuit, because we, too, are convinced
that the Bush administration is violating the Clean Air Act and going
against the intent of Congress. But again, that is a separate matter.
Again, as I already stated, this vote was a very strong showing of
bipartisan support for protecting clean air and ensuring healthy
communities, and against any backsliding on the Clean Air Act. And it
was by no means the end of this debate. We will not give up this fight
to stop any weakening of existing Clean Air Act protections and to
ensure that all Americans have clean, healthy air to breathe.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, to clear up a couple things, first, this
does not apply to coal-fired plants. The Senator from North Carolina
has been talking about that. I have a letter from the administrator
saying that. Second, this is not something that came out of the Bush
administration. It is something that came out of the Clinton
administration. In listening to some of the comments made by some of
the Senators on the other side, I think they have lost sight of that
fact.
Third, it is hard to find anyone who is not supporting this. People
want these plants to be able to go ahead, make the improvements, clean
up the air, and do a better job for the environment. We have the
National Conference of State Legislators, Governors, the environmental
councils of the States, the National Black Chamber of Commerce,
virtually every labor union; they are all listed. The list is on the
desks. I would encourage Members not to delay this effort. All this
amendment would do is delay it for 6 more months. It has already been
delayed for 10 years. It is time to go ahead. I urge Members to vote
against the amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the amendment.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There is a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. REID. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs.
Feinstein), the Senator from Indiana (Mr. Harkin), the Senator from
South Carolina (Mr. Hollings), and the Senator from Hawaii (Mr. Inouye)
are necessary absent.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Graham of South Carolina). Are there any
other Senators in the Chamber desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 46, nays 50, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 12 Leg.]
YEAS--46
Akaka
Baucus
Bayh
Biden
Bingaman
Boxer
Byrd
Cantwell
Carper
Chafee
Clinton
Collins
Conrad
Corzine
Daschle
Dayton
Dodd
Dorgan
Durbin
Edwards
Feingold
Graham (FL)
Gregg
Jeffords
Johnson
Kennedy
Kerry
Kohl
Lautenberg
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
McCain
Mikulski
Murray
Nelson (FL)
Nelson (NE)
Reed
Reid
Rockefeller
Sarbanes
Schumer
Snowe
Stabenow
Sununu
Wyden
NAYS--50
Alexander
Allard
Allen
Bennett
Bond
Breaux
Brownback
Bunning
Burns
Campbell
Chambliss
Cochran
Coleman
Cornyn
Craig
Crapo
DeWine
Dole
Domenici
Ensign
Enzi
Fitzgerald
Frist
Graham (SC)
Grassley
Hagel
Hatch
Hutchison
Inhofe
Kyl
Landrieu
Lincoln
Lott
Lugar
McConnell
Miller
Murkowski
Nickles
Pryor
Roberts
Santorum
Sessions
Shelby
Smith
Specter
Stevens
Talent
Thomas
Voinovich
Warner
NOT VOTING--4
Feinstein
Harkin
Hollings
Inouye
The amendment (No. 67) was rejected.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
Ms. COLLINS. I move to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
____________________