White House Says Resolution Before the Senate Would Impede Transition to Clean Energy Economy and put Americans at Risk

In a clear and unambiguous written "Statement of Administration Policy" [PDF] issued yesterday (8 June 2010), the Executive Office of the President said that a resolution that will be before the Senate on Thursday (10 June 2010) "would increase the Nation’s dependence on oil and other fossil fuels and block efforts to cut pollution that threatens our health and well-being." The statement said that the resolution (S.J.Res 26) would "would undermine the Clean Air Act and hinder EPA’s ability to comply with a Supreme Court ruling on greenhouse gasses (GHGs)."  The President's "senior advisors would recommend that he veto the Resolution" if it ever landed on his desk.

Here is the full text of the statement:

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

S.J. Res. 26 – Disapproval of EPA Endangerment Rule and Cause and Contribute Findings
(Sen. Murkowski, R-Alaska, and 40 cosponsors)

The Administration strongly opposes Senate passage of S.J. Res. 26, which would undermine the Clean Air Act and hinder EPA’s ability to comply with a Supreme Court ruling on greenhouse gasses (GHGs). The Administration believes that comprehensive energy and climate legislation is the most effective way to transition to a clean energy economy that will create jobs, protect the environment, and increase national security. S.J. Res. 26 would do just the opposite; it would increase the Nation’s dependence on oil and other fossil fuels and block efforts to cut pollution that threatens our health and well-being.

Specifically, passage of S.J. Res. 26 would block implementation of an historic, multi-agency Federal program set in motion by the Administration to promote fuel economy standards that will reduce oil consumption, save American consumers more than $3,000 in fuel costs over the lifetime of a model year 2016 vehicle, and limit pollution from tailpipe emissions. S.J. Res. 26 also would undermine the Administration’s efforts to reduce the negative impacts of pollution and the risks associated with environmental catastrophes, like the ongoing BP oil spill. As seen in the Gulf of Mexico, environmental disasters harm families, destroy jobs, and pollute the Nation’s air, land and water. Further, S.J. Res. 26 is contrary to the widely-accepted scientific consensus that GHGs are at increasingly dangerous concentrations and are contributing to the threat of climate change. S.J. Res. 26 would strip EPA of its authority to protect the public from GHG pollution, and thus prevent it from following its statutory obligations as interpreted by the Supreme Court.

Finally, S.J. Res. 26 would undo EPA’s carefully constructed approach to reducing pollution generated by the largest oil companies, oil refineries, and other large-scale polluters. EPA’s reasoned approach will provide industry certainty, which is essential to jumpstarting private -sector investments and innovation in clean, renewable energy. S.J. Res. 26 would block the United States from taking action to control environmentally damaging GHGs while other nations take the lead in transitioning to clean energy economies that create the jobs of the future.

If the President is presented with this Resolution of Disapproval, which would seriously disrupt EPA’s ability to address the threat of GHG pollution, as well as the multi-agency Federal GHG and fuel economy program, his senior advisors would recommend that he veto the Resolution.

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Online Resources:

	Clean Air Act Under Attack - Help WWF Fight Back!
	Tell Congress to oppose efforts to weaken the Clean Air Act.

How you can help: The Senate is set to debate and vote on a climate & energy bill in the final weeks of July or early August (2010). Call your Senators and ask them to vote YES on a climate & energy bill that limits fossil fuel pollution.

Online WWF Resources Regarding U.S. Climate & Energy Policy:

• U.S. Federal Policy section, WWF blog
• Act For Our Future
• What does the Spill have to do with a Climate Bill?

More information on the EPA's final endangerment finding is available from EPA's Web site, including:

• Findings
• Technical Support Document
• Response to Comment Documents
• Press Release
• Press Kit
  • Legal Basis (PDF) (1 p., 117 KB, About PDF)
  • Health Effects (PDF) (1 p., 95 KB, About PDF)
  • Environmental and Welfare Effects (PDF) (1 p., 45 KB, About PDF)
  • Climate Change Facts (PDF) (1 p., 39 KB, About PDF)
  • Light Duty Vehicle Program (PDF) (1 p., 39 KB, About PDF)
  • Timeline (PDF) (1 p., 30 KB, About PDF)
• Frequently Asked Questions (PDF) (3 pp., 38 KB, About PDF)

U.S. Senate Proposal Would Increase Oil Dependence, Cost Consumers at Gas Pump.  Press release (9 June 2010) from Environment America. 

Postings from Joe Romm of Climate Progress:

•  Murkowski ‘dirty air’ proposal would increase oil dependence, cost consumers at gas pump (9 June 2010)
• Clean Air Lisa vs Dirty Air Lisa (7 June 2010)
• Sen. Jeff Merkley argues against Lisa “Dirty Air” Murkowski’s radical attempt to overrule science. (21 Jan 2010)
• The Dirty Air Act.  (20 Jan 2010)

No Dirty Air Act.  Site sponsored by Clean Energy Works.

Murkowski Move an Assault on Science, Science Group Says.  Press release (21 January 2010) from the Union of Concerned Scientists.

WWF Climate Change Blog:

• Clean Air Act Under Attack (8 June 2010)
• Alaska's Senator Murkowski Fiddles as Alaska Burns (25 May 2010)
• Former EPA Administrator Russell E. Train Urges Senate to Reject Efforts to Weaken Clean Air Act (25 May 2010)
• NY Times: Congressional Efforts to Undermine EPA Authority to Regulate Greenhouse Gas Pollutants are "Worse than Inaction" (13 March 2010)
• While Major Floods and a Rapidly Changing Climate Threaten North Dakota, Its Congressman Opposes Curbs on Emissions (25 Feb 2010)
• Virginia Researchers and Planners Warn of Climate Change Impacts on Coastal Areas, As Attorney General Challenges the Science (23 Feb 2010)
•  As Weather Extremes Hammer Arkansas Farms, Senator Lincoln Endorses Veto of Finding that Climate Change Threatens Farmers (27 Jan 2010)
• EPA sets timetable for regulating climate pollution (23 Feb 2010)
• U.S. EPA: Greenhouse Gases "Threaten the Public Health and Welfare of the American People" (7 Dec 2010)