James Comer Accuses EPA Administrator Of Undermining 'The Stability Of Our Electric Grids'

2 months ago

At a House Oversight Committee hearing on Wednesday, Rep. James Comer (R-KY) spoke about the work of the EPA under President Biden.

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Transcript

00:00Committee on Oversight and Accountability will come to order. I want to welcome everyone here

00:03today. Without objection, the chair may declare a recess at any time. I now recognize myself for

00:09the purpose of making an opening statement. Today we are conducting oversight of the Biden

00:16administration's Environmental Protection Agency. EPA Administrator Michael Regan leads EPA as it

00:22implements President Biden's environmental agenda. Not only did President Biden have a disastrous

00:28debate performance, but his entire presidency has also been disastrous for the American people.

00:33President Biden's radical agenda has pushed out massive, costly regulations. From the moment he

00:40stepped into office, President Biden, or at least those around him, pushed out sweeping

00:44executive orders and regulations aimed at transforming critical sectors of our economy,

00:50from transportation to power generation. This administration has enacted a whole-of-government

00:56approach to change how these sectors operate in service to the left's radical climate agenda.

01:02And no cost is spared. But folks at home around this country will be left footing the bill for

01:07the price of these massive rulemakings. EPA's largest regulations, such as the tailpipe emissions

01:14rules for light, medium, and heavy-duty vehicles, have been estimated to cost nearly $900 billion

01:21to implement. Those rules require automakers to completely redesign their operations to produce

01:26more electric vehicles, regardless of what consumers are demanding in the actual marketplace.

01:33Instead of letting consumers in the market decide what products fit their lifestyle needs,

01:38the Biden administration wants to force them into these decisions, no matter what the cost is.

01:43EPA is also implementing costly regulations designed to force coal-fired power plants

01:48out of the power generation sector. Coal produced over 16 percent of the total electricity generation

01:54in the United States in 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

02:01In my home state of Kentucky, over two-thirds of our electricity is generated by coal-fired plants.

02:08But EPA's rules will force the premature retirement of reliable sources of electricity,

02:13like coal plants, at a time when electricity demand continues to rise.

02:18Removing reliable power generation capabilities undermines the stability of our electric grid

02:24and puts consumers at risk of rolling blackouts and forced rationing of electricity.

02:31And as these rules go into effect, Americans will be left literally powerless.

02:38How can the administration push to electrify the U.S. vehicle fleet

02:42on the one hand, while it undermines the reliability of the electric grid on the other?

02:47During the 118th Congress, this committee has investigated numerous regulations of various sizes

02:52and scopes, but one thing keeps reappearing. Higher costs of regulation leads to higher costs

03:00for consumers. The Biden administration has either ignored or refused to learn this basic economic lesson.

03:07It's very simple. When the federal government imposes new massive regulations, the costs of

03:14compliance just don't magically vanish into the air. Those costs are passed on to consumers who

03:20will be faced with higher prices and fewer choices in the market. And the numbers are staggering.

03:27By their own estimates, the Biden administration, in just three and a half years on the job,

03:31has imposed over $1.6 trillion in estimated new federal regulatory costs.

03:36And $1.3 trillion of those costs, over 80% of the total, are from new EPA regulations.

03:45Americans are already starting to see higher prices and fewer choices because of regulation.

03:50And we can expect it will only get worse as these rules really kick into high gear.

03:55Gas prices have skyrocketed, utility bills continue to increase,

04:00and inflation has eaten into every household's spending power.

04:04Administrator Regan, you committed at your confirmation hearing to build consensus

04:09around pragmatic solutions and to work in partnership with Congress.

04:16Well, sir, the sheer cost of the regulations coming out of the Biden administration doesn't

04:20strike me or many Americans as pragmatic solutions at all. $1.3 trillion just from the EPA is setting

04:29us down a dangerous path of over-regulation. I hope that we can impress upon the administration

04:35today how much it needs to start putting the interest of the American people first

04:39and not simply look to appease these well-organized, left-wing special interest groups

04:46and climate scaremongers. Americans cannot afford the bill they will ultimately be left

04:52paying by this administration. I want to thank you and I now yield to the ranking member for his

James Comer Accuses EPA Administrator Of Undermining 'The Stability Of Our Electric Grids'

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