Louisville Courier Journal - Protect Area Jobs by Delaying EPA Air Rules

Op-Ed

By Senator Dan Coats

In the next few days the White House is expected to fire another shot in its ongoing war on coal. Without immediate congressional action, the already fragile economy in Southern Indiana and Northern Kentucky will be dealt a devastating blow by an administration intent on pursuing political priorities at the expense of jobs.

The Environmental Protection Agency soon will finalize a clean air rule that could threaten over 20 percent of the coal-fired power plant generation in the Midwest and the Southeast. Known as Utility MACT, this regulation will result in job losses and higher monthly bills for Louisville-area consumers.

The rule will require a decrease in mercury emissions at power plants by Jan. 1, 2015, forcing most of our country's 1,100 coal-fired plants to retrofit their facilities or close their doors. The Partnership for Affordable Clean Energy reported that closures of U.S. coal-fired power plants will accelerate sharply during the next 10 years because of the EPA's utility rule.

This announcement comes just after the enactment of another major rule that will cost thousands of jobs in Kentucky and Indiana. In July the EPA began requiring utilities to reduce power plant emissions that may cause air-quality complications in neighboring states.

This regulation, called the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, is also one of the most expensive policies ever imposed on coal-fired plants. Under this rule, the EPA will force plants to install costly control technologies in exchange for minimal environmental gains. The compliance date for the first phase of this air quality rule is just a few weeks away on Jan. 1, 2012, and the second phase is Jan. 1, 2014.

The combined economic impact of these two expensive EPA regulations is alarming. The Indiana Energy Association estimates the cost of these rules will be between $6.5 and $7.3 billion, just in Indiana.

The National Economic Research Associates estimates net employment losses of 1.44 million across the country as a result of the current EPA rules and deadlines. By 2016, NERA reports that American ratepayers will see an average increase of 11.5 percent. In some regions of the United States, increases of up to 23.5 percent may occur.

Earlier this year, American Electric Power cited a series of EPA regulations as the cause for its decision to retire generating units at the Tanners Creek coal power plant in Lawrenceburg, Ind. To comply with the EPA rules and timelines, the power company expects to dedicate $6 billion to $8 billion in capital investment through the end of the decade. As a result of these costly regulations, 65 jobs will be lost at Tanners Creek.

While cleaning our air is a worthy goal, the EPA's rulings are unreasonable and will have far-reaching consequences. I support a complete overturn of these regulations, but the President stands in the way of reining in the EPA's overreach. He has even threatened to veto any bill that would repeal these EPA rules. While the President says publicly that job creation is his first priority, his administration continues to impose regulations that eliminate American jobs.

Given the President's position, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and I have introduced the Fair Compliance Act, bipartisan legislation to delay the implementation of these harmful EPA rules. Our legislation would extend the compliance deadline for these two rules -- so that both would fall on Jan. 1, 2017, providing utilities with the time they need to plan and prepare.

If we do not extend the time for utilities to comply responsibly, we will lose more jobs, jeopardize the reliability of our electric grid and hike rates on businesses and consumers. Failing to act could impact every American and every sector of our economy.

U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, a Republican, represents Indiana.

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