Statement

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) issued the following statement about the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit decision today to vacate the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule.

"With today's decision, the EPA is now zero for four in court, including the lawsuit I filed as Governor. These consistent decisions show that it's past time for this EPA to step back and work with us as an ally -- not an adversary -- to achieve a balance between our environment and our economy.

"I am especially pleased with this decision in particular because the court explicitly said that the EPA was wrong when it didn't give states the chance to pass their own rules before the EPA imposed a federal plan. Common sense should tell the EPA that their strategy is wrong and it's been proven futile. Working with the states will do a lot more to fix the environment and the economy than taking an adversarial stance. Since I became Senator, I have worked to make sure this rule is not put into place as it stands, and I will continue to work in a bipartisan way to make sure we have a reasonable, balanced approach."

Background:

Senator Manchin fought the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule by introducing the Fair Compliance Act, a bipartisan, commonsense measure that would improve the rule by providing a reasonable, responsible approach to the deadlines.

Senator Manchin also supported a Congressional Resolution of Disapproval offered by Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.), which would have stopped this rule from going into effect.