Senator Lankford Opposes Returning to Obama-Era Rule

WASHINGTON, DC – Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today voted to oppose a Senate Democrat-backed resolution that would undo the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) repeal of the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) and also repeal the adoption of the Trump Administration’s Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule, issued in June 2019. Lankford’s vote to oppose the Resolution of Disapproval effectively blocks the Democrats from overriding President Trump’s revocation of the CPP, an executive action by President Trump that Lankford supported in 2017.

“I agreed with President Trump when he eliminated the overreach of the previous Administration, and I continue to support the idea that the government should not attempt to regulate power generation through executive action like the CPP without authorization from Congress,” said Lankford. “The CPP pressed a political agenda that restricted small business and raised costs on energy generation. We should be good stewards of the environment and protect clean air and water, and we can accomplish that without higher costs for American families. The ACE rule represents a better alternative to CPP that will reduce CO2 emissions within the scope of existing law”

As Chairman of the Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management Subcommittee, Lankford continues to advocate for an easier, more transparent process for the public to engage in the federal rulemaking process. Lankford also included the elimination of funding for the Clean Power Plan in his 2015 Federal Fumbles government waste report (page 79 of the 2015 report). In 2016, Lankford introduced a bill to prohibit the Secretary of Energy and the EPA Administrator from considering the social cost of carbon, methane, nitrous oxide, or any other greenhouse gases when imposing regulations. 

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