State Sen. Vaneta Becker (R-Evansville) will serve on the following study committees, commissions and councils during the summer and fall months to help prepare for the 2016 session of the General Assembly:

• Interim Study Committee on Public Health, Behavioral Health, and Human Services
• Interim Study Committee on Roads and Transportation
• Indiana Commission for Women
• Commission on Minority and Women’s Business Enterprises
• Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities Interagency Coordinating Council

“Study committees are an important part of Indiana’s legislative process because they allow lawmakers to hear input from the public,” Becker said. “My colleagues and I are able to get a balanced and in-depth perspective on proposals that will come before the General Assembly in the upcoming session.”

When Indiana’s part-time legislature is not in session, lawmakers are assigned to interim study committees that meet to review the state’s top issues, as identified by the General Assembly during the prior legislative session.

Study committee topics are assigned by the bipartisan Legislative Council, comprised of 16 voting members — eight from the House of Representatives and eight from the Senate.

To view interim committee agendas and stream hearings online, visit www.in.gov/iga. More information about topics that will be examined can be found here.

(WASHINGTON, DC) – On Wednesday, Eighth District Congressman Larry Bucshon, M.D. voted to pass, H.R. 2042, The Ratepayer Protection Act,  a bill introduced by Congressman Ed Whitfield (KY-01), to protect families and businesses from significant electricity rate increases or reduced electric reliability that may result from EPA’s pending regulations for existing power plants, also known as the “Clean Power Plan.”

“This bill will protect the thousands of jobs and low-cost energy for our families and manufactures that are being put at risk by aggressive EPA overreach,” said Bucshon. “With 80 percent of Indiana’s energy generated from coal, the EPA isn’t just attacking our jobs and affordable energy; this plan will damage the reliability of our electric grid. 

 

“States have serious concerns that this plan will increase their citizens’ electric bills. Just today, Governor Pence announced that Indiana will not comply with the EPA’s plan unless it is drastically improved, and I agree with his stance.” 

H.R. 2042 passed the House by a vote of 247 to 180 and has gained support from over 200 organizations.

Earlier today, Governor Mike Pence announced that Indiana will not comply with the EPA’s Clean Power Plan in its current form. You can find Dr. Bucshon’s statement of support here - http://goo.gl/WWk84s.

SUMMARY: 

A bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced H.R. 2042 to allow for timely judicial review before states would be required to comply with the rule and to ensure a state would not be forced to implement a state or federal plan that would have a significant adverse effect on its ratepayers.

Extend Compliance Dates: The bill would extend the rule’s compliance dates pending judicial review, including the dates for submission of state plans.

Safe Harbor for States to Protect Ratepayers: The bill would provide that no state shall be required to implement a state or federal plan that the state’s governor, in consultation with other relevant state officials, determines would have a significant adverse effect on (i) retail, commercial, or industrial ratepayers; or (ii) the reliability of the state’s electricity system.

BACKGROUND: 

Last June, EPA proposed a rule for existing power plants, referred to by the agency as its “Clean Power Plan.” In the rule, EPA interprets a rarely invoked provision of the Clean Air Act, section 111(d), to allow the agency to set mandatory carbon dioxide (CO2) “goals” for each state’s electricity system. In the rule, EPA seeks to fundamentally change how electricity is generated, distributed, and consumed in the United States.

Under EPA’s unprecedented proposal, states would be required to submit complex state plans to EPA in 2016, and to begin to meet interim goals in 2020 and a final goal in 2030. For states that do not submit a satisfactory plan, EPA would impose a federal plan, a model of which has not yet been proposed by the agency. EPA estimates annual costs of $5.5 billion to $7.5 billion in 2020 and $7.3 billion to $8.8 billion in 2030. But according to other forecasts, the potential costs are much higher and could range from $366 billion to $479 billion over the period 2017-2031.

State governors, regulators, and other stakeholders have submitted extensive comments raising a wide range of concerns, from the legality of the rule to how it would be implemented, the significantly higher electricity costs, and the risks to electric reliability. According to a summary of state concerns, “32 states made legal objections, 28 raised significant concerns regarding compliance costs and economic impacts, 32 warned of electricity reliability problems, and 34 states objected to EPA’s rushed regulatory timelines.” EPA plans to finalize the rule this summer.

(WASHINGTON, DC) – On Tuesday, Eighth District Congressman Larry Bucshon, M.D. spoke on the House floor in support of H.R. 2576, The TSCA Modernization Act.  H.R. 2576 is a bipartisan measure that will modernize and reform the decades-old Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) first implemented in 1976 to manage hazardous chemicals.

Video of the speech can be accessed here - https://youtu.be/0CJClREiAsg and full text is included below:

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2576, the ‘TSCA Modernization Act of 2015,’ which updates the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) of 1976.

 

“This legislation will benefit the Eighth District of Indiana and our nation by improving the regulation of chemicals in commerce.

 

“Indiana’s 8^th district has a strong and diverse manufacturing sector, including plastics, fertilizer production, automobiles, and medical devices, which play pivotal roles in the local and state economy. 

 

“H.R. 2576 will improve the EPA’s outdated regulatory process for these industries and manufacturers, foster conditions for stronger interstate commerce, and ensure robust protections for public health and the environment. 

 

“I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.”

 

H.R. 2576 WILL:

• Provide EPA the tools to ensure chemicals in commerce are safer for consumers.

• Create a new system for EPA to evaluate and manage risks associated with chemicals already on the market:

o   Either EPA or a manufacturer (who is willing to pay the cost) may designate a chemical for risk evaluation.

o   The risk evaluation must stand up to rigorous scientific standards set out in the legislation.

o   If unreasonable risk is determined, EPA must immediately draft a rule to manage the risk.

• Set deadlines for EPA to take action:

o   Risk evaluations must be completed within 3 years.

o   Risk management rules must follow completion of risk evaluations by 90 days.

• Ensure user fees paid to EPA for specific purposes are used just for those purposes:

o   User fees will be deposited in a separate fund in the Treasury, and the fees charged and collected will match the cost of carrying out the specific purposes

• Provide limited preemption of state law:

o   Once EPA makes a final decision on a chemical, either a new rule or a determination that it poses no unreasonable risk, EPA action would apply in all states

o   Prior state laws that do not conflict with TSCA, and private rights of action under tort or contract law, are preserved

• Maintain protection of confidential business information:

o   Certain state, local, and tribal government officials and health care professionals will now have access

o   Confidentiality claims must be reclaimed after ten years

o   Exemption from CBI protection for health and safety studies does not include disclosure of confidential chemical formulas