[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 13 (Monday, January 31, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Page S361]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. ROCKEFELLER (for himself, Mr. Webb, Mrs. McCaskill, Mr. 
        Johnson of South Dakota, Mr. Manchin, Mr. Nelson of Nebraska, 
        and Mr. Conrad):
  S. 231. A bill to suspend, until the end of the 2-year period 
beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, any Environmental 
Protection Agency action under the Clean Air Act with respect to carbon 
dioxide or methane pursuant to certain proceedings, other than with 
respect to motor vehicle emissions, and for other purposes, to the 
Committee on Environment and Public Works.
  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President. I rise today with Senators Webb, 
McCaskill, Tim Johnson, Manchin, Ben Nelson, and Conrad to introduce 
the EPA Regulations Suspension Act of 2011. We are introducing this 
legislation for a simple but enormously important reason. At a time 
when our economy is finally headed toward a recovery, the last thing we 
want to do is add new burdens to American companies that could result 
in them cutting jobs or being less productive in the global 
marketplace.
  In fact, I believe that the fate of our entire economy, our wide and 
varied manufacturing industries and our workers, especially our coal 
workers, rests in part on the decisions we make here in Washington. One 
thing we should never do is put the fate of an entire industry into the 
hands of the Environmental Protection Agency.
  My legislation is simple and reasonable. It requires that for 2 years 
the EPA can take no regulatory action, regarding carbon dioxide and 
methane emission from stationary sources. During that time no facility 
can be subjected to any requirement to obtain a permit or meet a New 
Source Performance Standard under the Clean Air Act with respect to 
carbon dioxide or methane. At the same time the legislation 
specifically allows for the widely-supported motor vehicle emission 
standards to continue moving forward.
  At the beginning of this year regulations came into effect that say 
if a company wants to retrofit an existing or build a new power plant, 
or factory, they now have to find ways to reduce their greenhouse gas 
emissions.
  Later this year the EPA will propose expanding these rules to cover 
existing stationary sources that are not expanding their operations. 
The impact of these rules is that companies will sit on the sidelines 
and opportunities for innovation and job creation will be lost. Because 
of these new rules companies won't build that new factory. They won't 
build that new power plant. And so they won't employ some of the 
millions of Americans who are out of work. That is why I believe these 
regulations need to be suspended.
  I want to make one thing perfectly clear. I believe that climate 
change is an important issue and Congress should and will address it 
working collaboratively with the administration and the private sector.
  But the lead should come from Congress and not the EPA. Congress, 
unlike the EPA, can craft proposals that reduce greenhouse gases while 
simultaneously protecting our economy. Most importantly, Congress is 
directly accountable to the people whose lives we impact.
  We are capable of tackling this great challenge in a way that 
supports rather than undermines our economy and our future.
  But the process has to work. It has to be open. It has to be truly 
bipartisan. It has to acknowledge the fact that all of our States use 
energy in very different ways. It has to protect our economy. This will 
not be achieved overnight, but it is possible.
  Technology can be a solution to this problem. West Virginia is poised 
to lead the effort on clean energy technology: because we know energy. 
We know coal. We know natural gas. We know Carbon Capture and Storage 
or CCS as few others do. We are coming to know wind and we have great 
potential in learning how to use our geothermal resources as well.
  The fact is, we in West Virginia know and embrace what too many 
others either don't understand or refuse to see, which is that our 
Nation and countries around the world are dependent on coal. That is 
not something that will change when half the globe is struggling to 
rise out of poverty.
  In this country we get almost half our electricity from coal. That 
will not change anytime soon. Globally countries such as China and 
India continue to increase their usage of coal as they develop their 
economies.
  To fight climate change we can't just choose to stop using coal. Even 
if we in the United States did, the rest of the world wouldn't; and the 
problem would continue. Instead we must find the technological solution 
that allows us to use coal, while reducing its impact on the Earth and 
her people.
  I know that there are many on the Republican side of the aisle who 
believe it does not go far enough. There are many on my side of the 
aisle who believe it goes too far in tying the EPA's hands. Ultimately 
I believe this is good legislation because it is an achievable 
compromise. Too often in this body we seek to score political points on 
issues rather than solve problems that the country is facing now.
  And right now our Nation's manufacturing and industrial sectors are 
facing the prospect of overwhelming EPA regulation. Regulation that 
makes it harder for them to put America back to work. While many might 
think this is not the perfect solution it is a solution that I believe 
we can and should move early this year.
  One piece of the debate that is often missing in our discussions is 
to keep our focus on people and all the problems, including the problem 
of climate change, that affect their future.
  My focus is on protecting the hard-working people I represent--people 
who changed my life when I was born anew in the coalfields of West 
Virginia at the age of 26. These people, their work and their lives 
matter. Any regulatory solution that creates more problems for them 
than it fixes; and causes more harm than good in their lives is no 
solution at all. EPA regulation of greenhouse gases does just that.
  So that, Mr. President, is why I have introduced this legislation 
today. I hope that this body will act on it quickly, for we do not have 
time to waste. I yield the floor.
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