Utah Attorney General applauds decision to halt EPA Clean Power Plan

Following the US Supreme Court’s decision to stay the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan, while litigation continues in the D.C. circuit court, Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes has lauded the decision as a major victory for the bipartisan coalition of 29 states and state agencies:

“While the stay is no guarantee that the Supreme Court will eventually rule against the EPA, I believe the decision recognises the dramatic impact the rule would have on our state,” said Reyes. “We all want better air quality and a healthy environment for our families and future generations, but not by bypassing Congress, violating the Clean Air Act and ignoring meaningful input by the states.”

The coalition challenged the EPA’s power plan on 23 October 2015 – the day it was published. The states argue the EPA exceeded its authority by double regulating coal-fired power plants and forcing states to fundamentally shift their energy resources away from coal-fired generation.

Reyes added: “The EPA rule is complex but what it represents is simple: a power grab of epic proportions. This is one of the largest overreaches ever by the agency and, if left in place, would drastically expand its jurisdiction beyond the fence line and outside the scope of the Clean Air Act. It may be touted as cooperative federalism, but there is nothing cooperative about it. It is coercive, offensive to notions of federalism and will drastically increase energy costs and put thousands of already suffering Americans out of work. We can embrace a future that includes robust alternative clean energy sources without killing the coal industry.”

Edited from press release by Harleigh Hobbs

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/coal/12022016/utah-attorney-general-applauds-decision-to-halt-epa-clean-power-plan-227/