EPA Chief Gina McCarthy recently testified before Congress; when questioned by Chairman Lamar Smith over ineffective regulations that raise the cost of energy and thereby punish low income Americans, she admitted the regulations would have virtually no impact on climate.
All that effort, basically for nothing.
Transcript and video via Marc Morano of the Climate Depot (emphasis added):
CHAIRMAN LAMAR SMITH: “On the Clean Power Plan, former Obama Administration Assistant Secretary Charles McConnell said at best it will reduce global temperature by only one one-hundredth of a degree Celsius. At the same time it’s going to increase the cost of electricity. That’s going to hurt the lowest income Americans the most. How do you justify such an expensive, burdensome, onerous rule that’s really not going to do much good and isn’t this all pain and no gain.ADMINISTRATOR GINA MCCARTHY: “No sir, I don’t agree with you. If you look at the RIA we did, the Regulatory Impact Analysis you would see it’s enormously beneficial.CHAIRMAN SMITH: “Do you consider one one-hundredth of a degree to be enormously beneficial?”ADMINISTRATOR MCCARTHY: “The value of this rule is not measured in that way. It is measured in showing strong domestic action which can actually trigger global action to address what’s a necessary action to protect…”CHAIRMAN SMITH: “Do you disagree with my one one-hundredth of a degree figure? Do you disagree with the one one-hundredth of a degree?”ADMINISTRATOR MCCARTHY: “I’m not disagreeing that this action in and of itself will not make all the difference we need to address climate action, but what I’m saying is that if we don’t take action domestically we will never get started and we’ll never…”CHAIRMAN SMITH: “But if you are looking at the results, the results can’t justify the cost and the burden that you’re imposing on the American people in my judgement.”
Watch the entire exchange below:
It’s important to point out that the EPA’s numerous regulations are also job killers.
Nicolas Loris of the Heritage Foundation recently wrote:
The Many Problems of the EPA’s Clean Power Plan and Climate Regulations: A PrimerThis summer, the Obama Administration will finalize climate regulations for new and existing power plants under the Clean Air Act. While the regulations largely target coal-fired power plants, the costs of more expensive energy will be borne by all Americans. Higher energy bills for families, individuals, and businesses will destroy jobs and strain economic growth—and it will all be for naught. No matter one’s belief on the climate effects of man-made greenhouse emissions, the regulations will have a negligible impact—if any—on global temperatures.
North Carolina congressman Richard Hudson also recently addressed the issue:
EPA standards would kill jobsAs a member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, my top priorities are getting folks back to work, keeping energy affordable, advancing an all-of-the-above energy strategy and reining in the Environmental Protection Agency. I continue to hear from countless of our neighbors who are concerned with the EPA’s overreach and what it means for their jobs, their paychecks and their electricity bills…The EPA is not only threatening the American dream, but our very livelihood. Businesses and manufacturers of all sizes in our district require reliable power to not only keep the lights on but to keep their operations thriving. The EPA’s pending power plant rule will cause electricity prices to skyrocket for families and businesses alike, forcing businesses to trim elsewhere and leaving hardworking folks with less take-home pay and fewer jobs.
Featured image via YouTube.
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