By EPW Blog ——Bio and Archives--October 25, 2012
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“The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. § 602) requires federal agencies to publish in the Federal Register their regulatory agendas describing economically significant regulatory actions under development. The Act requires these agendas be published on a semiannual basis, specifically in April and October. It has come to my attention, however, that the federal government is not adhering to this legal requirement.” “As Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, which has jurisdiction over the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), my primary concern is with the Agency’s refusal to be open and transparent about its regulatory agenda. Magnifying this concern is that EPA, in what appears to be a string of politically motivated decisions, has “punted” or put on hold until after the election a number of economically damaging regulations, including greenhouse gas regulations, strict mandates for ground-level ozone, as well as guidance which seeks to greatly expand EPA’s authority to regulate waters of the U.S.”Last week Senator Inhofe released a detailed report that enumerates the slew of environmental regulations that the Obama-Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has quietly delayed or punted on before the election. As this report reveals, these rules taken together will inevitably result in the elimination of millions of American jobs, drive up the price of gas at the pump even more, impose construction bans on local communities, and essentially shut down American oil, natural gas, and coal production. Despite several media outlets requesting comment from the Obama-EPA on the report, the EPA refused to comment. The Obama-EPA silence is to be expected. As Ken Ward Jr, President of the Society of Environmental Journalists recently commented the “Obama EPA is the most difficult to get information and answers out of that I've covered in 20 years."
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