"[P]eople acting in a group can accomplish things which no individual acting alone could even hope to bring about." - FDR

News & Analysis | REG•WATCH Blog | Press Room

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Bush Administration Continues to Ignore CO2 Emissions -- and the Law

The White House has stopped EPA efforts to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, according to an investigation of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released today.

After the Bush administration had refused for six years to acknowledge global warming, the Supreme Court last April prodded EPA to consider regulating greenhouse gases (Massachusetts v. EPA). In a letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson, committee chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) outlines how we got to where we are today:

• "In May 2007, the President signed an executive order directing EPA and other federal agencies to develop regulations to address greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles. The President explicitly stated that this order was in response to Massachusetts v. EPA."
• "According to EPA staff, the proposal to regulate CO2 emissions from motor vehicles was 'about 300 pages;' and had 'extensive analysis about ... the costs and benefits.' "
• "The proposal developed by the career EPA staff called for significant reductions in CO2 emissions from motor vehicles."
• "Internal EPA documents indicate that you were scheduled to make decisions on the endangerment finding and the vehicle greenhouse gas rule as early as October 4,2007."
• "After you endorsed the finding that CO2 emissions endanger welfare, the proposed determination was submitted to the White House Office of Management and Budget."

That's where things start getting fuzzy. Apparently, EPA and OMB have completely stopped working on the rule. EPA also sent the rule to the Department of Transportation (DOT). EPA had been working closely with DOT up until that point, according to EPA staff.

The White House is claiming the rule may no longer be necessary in light of fuel efficiency legislation Congress passed in December. That legislation requires DOT to tighten the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards - the federal standards for vehicle fuel efficiency. Waxman's letter quickly dispels such claims:

As a legal matter, the passage of provisions in the Energy Independence and Security Act requiring the Department of Transportation to strengthen federal CAFE standards does not affect EPA's legal obligation to regulate CO2 emissions...

Moreover, the Supreme Court held in Massachusetts v. EPA: "The fact that DOT's mandate to promote energy efficiency by setting mileage standards may overlap with EPA's environmental responsibilities in no way licenses EPA to shirk its duty to protect the public 'health' and 'welfare.' "

Waxman is requesting from Johnson more information on why the rule was halted. Stay tuned to Reg•Watch for updates.