Chairman Shimkus, Chairman Burgess, thank you for holding this hearing
on the EPA's proposed ozone rule and its impacts on manufacturing.
First, let's make one thing clear: the EPA is responsible for setting ozone
standards based on what is considered safe from a public health perspective. The
compliance costs to business are not to be considered in its rulemakings.
Health experts, epidemiologists, and numerous medical organizations have
clearly stated that the current ozone standard of 75 parts per billion (ppb) is not
adequate to protect public health -- particularly for vulnerable populations such as
children, the elderly, outdoor workers and those with chronic medical conditions
like asthma.
The EPA has indicated its final rule (due in October) will likely land
somewhere between 65 and 70 ppb. I strongly support EPA action on this issue,
although I believe a 60 ppb standard would more effectively protect public health.
The existing standards are not doing enough to protect public health. In my
home state of Illinois, 13% of children suffer from smog-related asthma -- well
above the national average.
In response to mounting medical evidence and Clean Air Act requirements,
the federal courts rightly directed the EPA to reconsider existing inadequate health
protections against smog last year.
Let me repeat -- this rulemaking is court-mandated. Federal law requires the
EPA to maintain clean air standards, and the courts have said it must do more to
meet that requirement.
While anticipated business compliance costs have no place in determining
ozone standards, industry concerns about the impacts of this rulemaking are
overblown.
We will hear from some of our witnesses that proposed ozone standards
would stifle manufacturing investments and expansion. That argument is not new
-- but it is flawed.
Since the Clean Air Act was enacted into law more than 40 years ago, we
have seen tremendous progress in cleaning up our air and in protecting thousands
of communities around the country. That has been done in concert with
technological innovation and a growing economy.
Doomsday predictions about the impacts of EPA regulations on American
businesses have never been borne out by the facts. From 1990-2010, emissions of
the most common air pollutants have declined by more than 40 percent, while
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has increased by more than 65 percent.
These standards will save and improve American lives. I look forward to
the EPA finalizing the rule, and to the manufacturing sector continuing its long
record of success in expanding while at the same time complying with EPA
regulations.
Again, I look forward to hearing from our witnesses to gain from their
perspectives on this important rulemaking. I yield back the balance of my time.