| (WASHINGTON, D.C.) – On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4775, the Ozone Standards Implementation Act, a commonsense bill that will provide states, like Indiana, the flexibility in implementing the Environmental Protection Agency’s ozone standards.
Ozone levels have been on a constant decline since the 1980s and states are doing their best to meet standards put in place by the Clean Air Act in 2008. Unfortunately, the EPA did not release the final implementation rules for the 2008 regulation until last year. As communities are working to meet these requirements, the EPA again moved the goal post by imposing additional planning and compliance obligations on the states in October. Now, states are expect to simultaneously implement the 2008 standards and the 2015 standards – standards the EPA knows are not currently economically or technologically feasible. Eighth District Congressman and member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee Larry Bucshon, M.D. released the following statement after voting to support H.R. 4775: “I have always believed regulations put forth by the administration should strike the appropriate balance between protecting our environment and protecting the jobs and affordable energy supported by the energy industry,â€Â said Bucshon. “The path forward should be achieved through private sector innovation and technological advancements, not one-sized fits all government mandates that only serve to stymie development. That’s why it is so important the House passed legislation today toprovide states, like Indiana, the flexibility and time needed to implement new ozone standards on an efficient and realistic timeline and address other practical implementation challenges they face. This legislation will help protect our state’s coal mining and manufacturing jobs.†H.R. 4771 passed the House by a vote of 234 to 177. |
