EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced plans to roll back dozens of environmental regulations, calling it the “most consequential day of deregulation in American history.”
Zeldin stated that the administration’s actions will eliminate trillions of dollars in regulatory costs and reduce the cost of living for American families, particularly affecting expenses related to purchasing cars, heating homes, and operating businesses.
The big picture: A total of 31 environmental rules are set to be rolled back, including the scientific finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare, a basis for climate change regulations.
- In addition to rolling back the endangerment finding, Zeldin and the EPA plan to rewrite regulations on air pollution from fossil-fuel fired power plants and emissions from vehicles, challenging the implementation of rules aimed at reducing pollution and improving public health.
- The EPA will also target rules related to industrial pollution of mercury and other air toxins, soot pollution, federal protections for wetlands, and diversity, equity, and inclusion programs within the agency.
What he’s saying: Zeldin defended the rollback as a move towards achieving environmental protection through innovation rather than strangulation, focusing on ensuring that American energy remains clean, affordable, and reliable.
- “Our actions will also reignite American manufacturing, spreading economic benefits to communities,” Zeldin wrote in an essay in The Wall Street Journal.
