[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 143 (Friday, September 23, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  TRANSPARENCY IN REGULATORY ANALYSIS OF IMPACTS ON THE NATION ACT OF 
                                  2011

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                               speech of

                          HON. SANDER M. LEVIN

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 22, 2011

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2401) to 
     require analyses of the cumulative and incremental impacts of 
     certain rules and actions of the Environmental Protection 
     Agency, and for other purposes:

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the TRAIN Act and urge 
the House to reject it.
  The Clean Air Act is one of this nation's most important laws. Over 
the last 40 years, it has greatly reduced pollution across the length 
and breadth of this country, allowing all Americans to live longer, 
healthier lives. There is a tendency to take the steady air quality 
improvements our country has made for granted. In the course of my 
trade duties on the Ways and Means Committee, I have visited many 
countries. I've been to foreign cities where the air is so thick with 
smog that some days you can't see buildings that are just a few blocks 
away. The air is hard to breathe because it is thick with ozone and 
particulate pollution. This is not what we want here in America.
  The legislation before the House today has many shortcomings. I 
especially object to the provisions of this bill that delay two 
important Clean Air rules. The bill would delay the Mercury and Air 
Toxics Standards Rule as well as the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule 
until at least 2013, and very likely much longer than that since the 
bill eliminates all statutory and court-ordered deadlines for both 
rules.
  Congress ordered EPA to take action to curb mercury and other air 
toxics 21 years ago, and more than two decades later we're still 
waiting for action. This is particularly a problem in the Great Lakes 
region. Mercury is thrown into the air by coal-burning power plants 
hundreds of miles away and bioaccumulates in Great Lakes fish. Mercury 
is especially a health risk for pregnant women and infants because 
exposure to mercury has been linked to nervous system damage.
  The cost of further delay of the Mercury and Air Toxics Rule is high. 
For each year we delay, there will be up to an additional 17,000 
premature deaths; 11,000 non-fatal heart attacks; 120,000 cases of 
aggravated asthma, and 12,200 hospital and emergency room visits. The 
Republican leadership of the House appears to be comfortable with 
continued inaction on air toxics. I am not. We should vote this bill 
down.

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