Rogers on Supreme Court's Decision to Overturn EPA Air Quality Rule

Statement

U.S. Rep. Harold 'Hal' Rogers (KY-05) released the following statement regarding the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) 2011 rule establishing the first-ever limits on mercury and air toxins (MATS) emitted by coal-fired power plants.

"This decision is further confirmation that the EPA is not concerned about devastating our economy or putting coal miners out of work. The justices clearly directed this agency to examine the impact of its rule-making policies on our utilities before setting unrealistic limits. Unfortunately, the damage has already been done in the coalfields where power plants have already shut down or started the costly process to switch to alternative sources in anticipation of compliance deadlines and fines. Since the Obama Administration started its war on coal in 2009, we've lost more than 9,000 coal mining jobs in Eastern Kentucky, and I can only hope today's decision will be a sign of more regulatory relief for coal mining families."

According to the Kentucky Cabinet for Energy and Environment's first quarterly coal report for 2015, "of the power plants Kentucky sold coal to in 2011, one-third will have closed coal units by the end of 2015. Of the power plants currently receiving Kentucky coal, 17 have announced closures by the end of 2015, with seven more for 2017 and combined account for one-third of current production."

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