Administrator Gina McCarthy, Remarks at League of Conservation Voters Capital Dinner, As Prepared

Thank you, Carol. It is such an honor to follow in your footsteps and those of so many other amazing men and women who have taken the reins at EPA.

Will you look at this crowd! Many of you have come a good distance to DC and it's great to have you here. So I can say thank you for all the tremendous support--and for all the work you do to help get the information out--to make sure government at all levels works for American families who value clean air, clean water, healthy land and a safe climate.

Seriously, though, coming to DC in the summer? Did you think President Obama was going to show up again this year? If so, sorry -- just me.

The thing is, I know that if President Obama could make the time to come to this dinner, he would. Every time. Because his conviction and commitment to fighting pollution and the public health challenges of our time are second to none.

There's something from him I want to read to you, and it's pretty unusual. It's a Statement of Administration Policy, a SAP, hot off the presses. And let me explain to you why this is different. The White House always issues a SAP when a bill reaches a certain stage and they want to say what they're going to do about it. Generally, if the White House wants to send the signal the President doesn't like the bill, they say, "the President's senior advisors would recommend he veto the bill."

But I have in front of me a Statement of Administration Policy that speaks to H.R. 2042, the so-called Ratepayer Protection Act of 2015. Which is misleading, because this is actually a bill that would slow down our ability to stop carbon pollution. Let me read you part of this SAP. "Because H.R. 2042 threatens the health and economic welfare of current and future generations by blocking important standards to reduce carbon pollution from the power sector, if the President were presented with H.R. 2042, he would veto the bill."

I remember, on Inauguration Day, when the expectation of leadership could be no higher--he made it a point to speak about protecting our planet. He made it a point to say something about climate change. He did that. He understood it would be part of his legacy. And almost two years ago to the day--he made it a point to do something about climate change, when he unveiled his Climate Action Plan.

And this Administration is delivering. I cannot tell you how proud I am to work with the brilliant people at EPA. I'm proud of what we're doing to deliver on the President's promise--by finalizing our Clean Power Plan to set the first-ever carbon pollution standards for our power sector this summer.

You all come from different places, you have very different lives, but you all share a common understanding--an understanding that our democracy works best when citizens are informed, engaged, and empowered to decide their own future.

By holding politicians' and policymakers' feet to the fire to make sure they put science over sound bites, and the needs of the people they serve above all others, LCV helps connect the dots for millions of people across the country, so they can demand that their leaders respond to societal needs, not special interests.

That's democracy in action. That's what has made sure public health and environmental protection are not window dressing in this country, but part of the fabric and the foundation of our economy. That's why we're going to take action on climate now. That's what the League of Conservation Voters is all about.

When drinking water sources for 1 in 3 Americans were left vulnerable to pollution--we had a responsibility to act. So last month, we finalized the Clean Water Rule and LCV was there to help. I want to thank everyone here who helped get that rule over the finish line. But the protections the new rule promises are not yet delivered. We need to keep working hard to ensure that the rule is implemented.

When cutting-edge technologies to reduce pollution from cars and trucks are available today--we have a responsibility to act, and we have. And guess what, the automakers, in the first two years of the program, have delivered way above expectations. It's so great.

That's why just last week, we announced the next phase of greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency standards for heavy duty vehicles. We have to work together to get that over the finish line next year. With this rule, we're talking no less than 1 billion metric tons of carbon pollution reduced.

And of course, we have a new ozone standard that we're revisiting, we have a Worker Protection Standard we need to get across the finish line. This isn't about all carbon, all the time; it's about doing our jobs comprehensively, effectively, paying attention to the people and communities that have been left behind--and we can make this work.

And that call to action isn't just all DC talk, it's real action in DC and in states, cities, neighborhoods all across this nation--and that's where LCV shines.

You know, nothing we say here in Washington matters as much as what you do in backyards in Montana and Pennsylvania, in living rooms in Colorado and Ohio, or in town halls in New Mexico and New Hampshire.

In the end, no matter where standards are set, all protections are local and innovation and investments are personal. Our battle against carbon pollution cannot be won here in Washington. It has to be won from the ground up in homes, places of worship, schools, businesses, city halls and state capitals, where your chapters operate and where your volunteers live, work and play.

So tell your communities how much this country needs the Clean Power Plan to unleash investment in new industries and create new jobs. Show them how climate action means healthier people and healthier cities. Prove that a clean energy transformation is already underway, that it's unfolding in front of us and a low carbon future is inevitable so let's embrace it.

Remind them that since President Obama took office, wind power has tripled and we get 20 times more of our electricity from solar. In 2014, the solar industry added about one job every 20 minutes. With EPA's Clean Power Plan we are building on that momentum. When we finalize our plan this summer, we will not just be embracing our moral responsibility to act--we will be building on 40-plus years of experience in embracing our responsibility to work with states as co-regulators, to keep electricity affordable and reliable for everyone while we reduce the pollution that threatens our health and our environment.

And believe me, we will keep the economy moving forward as investors get the clear long term signals they need to embrace the technologies, services and operations that will allow the U.S. to lead the world into a low-carbon future.

Global climate change demands global action, and we simply cannot wait to get started any longer. Just yesterday EPA put out a report that quantifies just how much we have to lose if we fail to act and how much we have to gain if we take global action now.

I know I'm biased here, but this report is a big deal. Researched by scientists in our Climate Change Impacts and Risk Analysis (or CIRA) program--it shows the huge opportunity we have to protect our health, our economy, and our infrastructure when we act on climate, and spur the world to follow.

I highly recommend it, especially if you're "not a scientist."

And last week, speaking to--as he put it--"every living person on the planet," Pope Francis challenged us to meet our moral obligation to tackle climate change; to focus on those who have the least, because they're harmed the most. To do more than reduce the pollution fueling the problem, but to ensure all people have access to a safer, cleaner, more stable and inclusive society.

I don't think any of us could say it better. So when someone comes up to you and asks if climate change is real, tell them to check out our CIRA science report to get the facts, and to read the pope's encyclical so they can understand why taking action now on climate change is a moral responsibility. So get busy.

Even better--if someone comes up to you and asks if climate change is real, just say: "Is climate change real? Is the Pope Catholic?"

Case closed.

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