On Thursday, March 10, 2011, the House Subcommittee on Energy and Power passed the Energy Tax Prevention Act of 2011, H.R. 910. This bill was introduced by Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) on March 3 and would strip EPA of their ability to regulate greenhouse gases. This bill would nullify the following EPA Regulations:
- The Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule
- The Endangerment Finding
- The Tailoring Rule
- The determination that the following gases are considered “air pollutants”: Water vapor, Carbon dioxide, Methane, Nitrous oxide, Sulfur hexafluoride, Hydrofluorocarbons, Perfluorocarbons.
This legislation would not have an effect on the light duty vehicle rule.
The bill will be marked up by the full House Committee on Energy and Commerce, next week, where it is also expected to pass. A companion bill has been introduced in the Senate by Senate Environment and Public Works Ranking Member, James Inhofe (R-OK).
SWANA will continue to monitor this and provide members with updates as we receive them.