The Hill E2 wire reports:
House GOP spending bill prohibits funding for EPA climate regs
A government spending bill unveiled Friday night by House Republicans would prohibit funding for Environmental Protection Agency climate regulations through September of this year.
The continuing resolution, which would fund the government through the end of the fiscal year, is the latest attempt by Republicans to stop EPA from regulating greenhouse gas emissions. Republicans argue that pending EPA climate rules will destroy the economy and result in significant job losses. GOP lawmakers, including House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.), have introduced legislation to permanently block the agency’s climate authority.
The bill would block funding for all current and pending EPA climate regulations for stationary sources.
Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), the chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee on interior and the environment, said he worked closely on the language with Upton. He said the language would give Upton time to move forward with his legislation.
“It has become clear to me in talking to the job creators in this country that allowing these regulations to go into effect would prevent job creation and inhibit economic growth at a time when our economy is still struggling,” Simpson said in a statement. “It should be up to Congress, not the Administration, to determine whether and how to regulate greenhouse gases, and in attempting to do so without congressional authority, I’m concerned that EPA has overreached.”
The continuing resolution makes massive cuts to the EPA’s budget. The legislation cuts EPA funding by $3 billion, 29 percent below fiscal year 2010. Overall, Simpson cut $4.5 billion from his subcommittee’s budget.
Full report here: House GOP spending bill prohibits funding for EPA climate regs
R. Gates says: “…IMO, this is interesting theatrics for the Republicans, but likely nothing more.”
You wish.
Given the EPA ‘up yours’ attitude. that’s a good first step toward getting their attention. I suggest another step –
Forcing EPA management to live in the DC area only raises living expenses for them, and concentrates government spending in an area that’s already awash in money. We should introduce a bill that moves EPA headquarters out into the heartland, to regions that could benefit from additional employment, and that would provide lower living costs to the EPA employees.
I had Lenexa, Kansas in mind, but Cedar Rapids, Iowa or Lincoln, Nebraska would do.
Come to think on it, moving other govt agencies out into the heartland would also prove two-way beneficial. Kewanee, IL is only a short drive to the bright lights of Peoria, for instance.
This is but a battle in the coming war for the budget resolution and the debt limit increase. Both sides understand that the Republicans have the cover of a high deficit and debt to kill some things they have long wanted to kill. There will never be a better time to kill things.
But the real battle is over framing the issue. Obama has taken steps to kill or reform Freddie and Fannie – he knows the Republicans will if he doesn’t. Same with the spending freeze and the tax debate – this is all posturing.
According to polls, the public is less concerned about the deficit than jobs and the economy.
Along with the science, care should be taken to stress the job loss such regulations produce, which will go well with the loss of energy jobs due to lack of permits, etc.
That is good news but let’s make this real. Seems though if you really think this is good then write or call your Congressmen and let them know of your firm support for this move. Our has already has got the message. Gather names who oppose it. You might need those names during discussions leading up to the next election. Seems better to do something along with all of the praising and talking, this is not quite over yet. If you care for your family, children, friends, pick up a pen or the phone. Emails don’t count. Twitters don’t count. Make it something real. All here have said they think this is political, so, make it political.
— An Okie
Many rats are now planning to desert the sinking ship?
R. Gates says:
“Too bad this will be vetoed by the President, eh?”
So what? It would take a 2/3rds vote of both the House & Senate to override the President’s veto. Not gonna happen.
So far, so good. I just hope the Republicans don’t go “wobbly”as Margaret Thatcher would say.
Cut it by 3 BILLION dollars! That’s not the total. Think of such a large sum [which is the entire GDP of some small countries] and the fact that they are proposing “cutting” it by $3 billion.
I am disgusted at the monster the American Government has become.
Rumors is that Donald Trump might run for president.
Now that is a winner candidate if there ever was one.
Can you imagine him going through WHOLE departments and agencies that have FAR outlived their useful life with the words: “You’re fired!”
Hell yes!!
Chris
Norfolk, VA, USA
No no no…budget reconciliation, the same way Obamacare was passed can be used to repeal it.
Reconciliation
Since the current continuing resolution ends 4 March, I presume this 29% cut is off the remaining, almost, 7 months. That would be a .29 x (7/12) =16.9% cut. Is someone also cutting NASA’s climate escapades?
So the more subtle ploy is a CR for the EPA specifically minus any CO2 money, and a second CR for the rest of the Govt Budget? And who vetoes what, with what ramifications? No more Spotted Dowels?
There are a number of ways to play within the rules.
Could we be seeing a Gov’t shutdown on 5 march, if there is veto?
Details of the House Appropriations Committee proposed budget are here:
http://appropriations.house.gov/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=261&Month=2&Year=2011
The list of programs cut is here:
http://republicans.appropriations.house.gov/_files/ProgramCutsFY2011ContinuingResolution.pdf
Besides the EPA, NSF is cut by $750 million compared to the FY 11 request. NASA is cut by $580 million.
R. Gates says:
February 11, 2011 at 8:58 pm
IMO, this is interesting theatrics for the Republicans, but likely nothing more.
Right you are , Gates! With all of the latte’ Commie throw-backs, congenital Trolls, and craven Infantiles as your mighty Post Normal brain trust, you’re in no danger at all of ever losing a
FreakClown Show.This is an election killer for the democrats. Sec Chu is telling Obama that temps are declining and that Americans will revolt if their heat bills and gasoline bills skyrocket. Cap and trade wiped out their base. Enviormental groups have tried to pretend otherwise. Nobody believes in solar and wind anymore. In Tucson where I
live utilities are offering incentives for solar but nobody is biting. Al Gores speculation that global warming causes cooling has put the final nail in the AGW coffin. The mainstream media now does not talk about big Al and NPR will be defunded next week.
At 9:26 PM on 11 February, Mike McMillan had written:
.
I can go better than that. If we’re looking to Kansas, let’s forget about Lenexa (which is a rather nice, affluent suburb of Kansas City) and consider Greensburg instead.
You want an area “that could benefit from additional employment” in the heartland? Well, Greensburg is the town down near the Oklahoma border that got hit by an F5 tornado on 4 May 2007, a storm that destroyed just about everything in the city.
I visited Greensburg back in the late ’70s, and found it a very nice little place, way to hellangone out in the southwest corner of the Sunflower State, reachable only after driving for hours through the kind of country that leaves you wondering what kind of insanity made little Dorothy want to come back.
In addition to having gotten eaten by the hairiest kind of twister imaginable, Greensburg is remarkable as the site of the largest hand-dug well in the western hemisphere.
But best of all, for housing the whole federal government’s Environmental Protection Agency, the city fathers of Greensburg has declared their tiny polity a Green City. From the Wikipedia article:
.
Ain’t that just the perfect place in America to put the whole bloody EPA?
Too bad you don’t have a U.K. style parliamentary system.
If the sitting government doesn’t have enough numbers in the house of reps or senate to approve the appropriation bill – in essence the Government budget – the country becomes ungovernable. The Queen or her representative can dissolve parliament and call new elections. Both houses and all members – A double dissolution. Every seat up for election. A caretaker government is installed from the calling of double dissolution until a new government is installed after election. A caretaker government can introduce no legislation.
Why would the president veto a spending cuts bill?
This is exactly what the American people want to see: a reduction in spending. Government cuts make him look good and and he will still be open and able to support legislation to fund green energy projects which will protect his position on the environment. Seems like the opportunity to achieve a win-win for him.
Heck we can probably expect him to say something along the lines of, “We’ve made some hard decisions, made major cuts that will have a positive impact on the deficit…but we have also cleared some obstacles while creating opportunities for businesses to capitalize on green energy projects and create more jobs” Hey, stranger things have happened. Or am I missing something?
Johnb—
I loved your deficit youtube, but the credit shouldn’t go to Harry Reid. Most of those shots are lined up because someone thought we should be the first country in the history of the planet to launch two wars and cut taxes.
Perhaps a small benefit from that fiasco will be a better CO2 policy.
1. Nobody has shown that current global climate variation is unusual in any way.
2. Nobody has shown that current global climate variation is due to human CO2 emissions.
3. Nobody has shown that any regulations proposed by EPA would have any measurable impact on global CO2.
4. Nobody has shown that EPA has authority over global climate to begin with.
Bottom line: waste of money.
Climate regulations are one thing, but the GOP are aiming ‘way too deep. I was a contributing author to these national water infrastructure security enhancements, which were partially funded by USEPA. Download the documents here:
http://www.awwa.org/Resources/Content.cfm?ItemNumber=29824&showLogin=N
Be careful what you wish for, if you want to “de-fund” the entire Environmental Protection Agency. These folks are working hard to ensure that terrorists are not able to contaminate your drinking water. The risk from domestic extremism is off the chart right now according to the FBI.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/09/AR2011020906648.html
EPA must be dissolved.
Budget cuts will never be enough while this nest of saboteurs exists in principle.
Only $3B? I’m sure I could get another $1.5B out of it.
Give me the padlock for GISS’ office door, for that I’ll buy my own ticket to JFK.
I suppose we can expect Fenton to pick up the tab for the realclimate domain registration.
No doubt there are Obama appointees who, over this weekend,
will sit at home in a chair, cradle their heads in their hands, and
rock back and forth gently moaning, “This is not happening…
this is not happening.”
Some of them will be from the State department and our
Intelligence agencies following the diplomatic nightmare
enveloping Egypt and the Middle East.
Some will be from the EPA. They, having lost the hearts and
fumbled control of the minds of the American citizens over
Global Warming/Climate Change, now face a curtailment of
runaway funding.
Those “scientists”, researchers, meteorolgists lobbyists, and
their ilk who have helped fabricate and then touted the “science
is solid” credo are seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. The
light they see is the freight train of scientific and political reality
headed straight for them.
With the wailing and gnashing of teeth to come, they all better
have a good dental plan.
“These folks are working hard to ensure that terrorists are not able to contaminate your drinking water. The risk from domestic extremism is off the chart right now according to the FBI.”
So, it’s up to the FBI to deal with the terrorists.
EPA caused much more harm than any terrorists could ever dream of.