Providing for Congressional Disapproval of the Rule Submitted By the Environmental Protection Agency Relating to ``Review of Final Rule Reclassification of Major Sources As Area Sources Under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act''

Floor Speech

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Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member for yielding me time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in opposition to S.J. Res. 31.

Once again, Republicans are gutting our most fundamental pollution regulations.

This bill overturns air quality regulations for the most polluting industrial facilities in the country, giving a green light for polluters to pump more cancer-causing pollutants into the air we breathe.

Without these safeguards, nearly 2,000 of the Nation's largest polluters would get a free pass. Oil refineries, chemical manufacturers, pesticide producers, they would all be allowed to shut off their pollution controls and start spewing some of the most dangerous chemicals directly into our air: lead, mercury, arsenic, benzene. When inhaled, these pollutants are known to have significant health impacts, including cancer, birth defects, infertility, organ failure, and developmental disorders in children.

The science is clear. Pollution kills. Study after study has shown that air pollution is linked to higher rates of hospitalizations and death.

Every year, air pollution kills over 100,000 Americans, and nearly half of Americans now live in areas with harmful levels of pollution, up 20 percent from just last year.

This is a health crisis in the making. Republicans aren't cutting red tape. They are sentencing thousands of Americans to die in communities across our country. This isn't a partisan issue. This affects everybody. Red States and blue States, Republican and Democrat, every American deserves clean air.

Yet, my Republican colleagues would rather prioritize their donors in the oil and chemical business instead of protecting the health of their own constituents.

Let's not forget, while Republicans are attacking Americans' access to clean air, they are also ramming through their big, ugly reconciliation bill, which slashes funding for pollution reduction and prevention programs, ends clean energy and climate programs, and strips away healthcare from almost 14 million Americans.

The Republicans' agenda will make Americans sicker and poorer, sending more Americans to the hospital, and ensuring fewer Americans can afford the healthcare they need.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for clean air. Vote ``no'' on S.J. Res. 31.

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