Central Louisiana News

U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY) are taking a stand against the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) new rule tightening fine particulate matter (PM2.5) standards. Along with 45 Senate Republicans, they have introduced a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution to prevent the EPA from implementing this regulation.

Dr. Cassidy expressed his concerns about the impact of the new rule on American jobs, stating, “The U.S. has made major strides in improving air quality while growing and powering our economy. The Biden administration’s final rule ignores this progress and incentivizes manufacturing to move their jobs to China away from Louisiana. The resolution steps in to fix this new red tape that kills American jobs.”

Senator McConnell also criticized the Biden Administration's new mandate, highlighting its potential negative effects on American manufacturing and jobs. He stated, “The Biden Administration rolled out yet another job-killing mandate that would impose more unilateral economic pain at home. This one goes well beyond the regulatory standards of most European allies, let alone our top strategic competitor, China. The EPA’s new standard is so strict that upon its effect, 30 percent of U.S. counties, including many in my home state of Kentucky, would immediately find themselves out of compliance, grounding manufacturing growth to a halt.”

The EPA's decision to tighten PM2.5 emissions for the first time in a decade has raised concerns, especially considering data showing a significant decrease in concentrations since 2000. The majority of PM2.5 emissions come from sources like wildfires and dust from agriculture and roads, which are challenging to control.

Cassidy and McConnell are supported by a large group of U.S. Senators who have cosponsored the CRA resolution to prevent the EPA from moving forward with the new regulation. Their joint effort aims to protect American workers and job creators from what they perceive as unnecessary regulatory burdens imposed by the Biden Administration.