The new primary ozone standard of 70 parts per billion (ppb) is definitely a step in the right direction, but it has taken EPA far too long to make this much-needed change.
We should not forget, however, that EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson sent a proposed standard of 65 ppb to the White House in August 2011, but was told explicitly by President Obama to withdraw it because the White House economists thought it would be too costly for business, despite the fact that this delay came at the expense of the health of vulnerable Americans.
The Supreme Court has held that the Clean Air Act prohibits EPA from taking such cost considerations into account when setting the standards, but that does not stop affected industries from railing against any protections the agency promulgates to protect public health.
We can expect the regulated industries to complain that a 70 ppb standard will cost too much as well. And they will undoubtedly challenge the new standard in court.
In addition, when the litigation is done, we will still be more than a decade away from meeting the standard in many of the most populous regions of the country.Once EPA promulgates the standard, EPA has two years to designate which areas have attained the standard and which have not. The states have 3 years after the promulgation of the standard to write state implementation plans designed to attain the standard by 5 years after the designation in non attainment areas (or ten years, if EPA grants and extension), but the process never proceeds this smoothly, and EPA usually misses the designation deadline.
We would all be better served if the industries and a few industry-dominated state environmental agencies quit fighting with EPA and got down to the task of protecting the public health by reducing emissions sufficiently to meet the new standard.
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Thomas McGarity | October 1, 2015
The new primary ozone standard of 70 parts per billion (ppb) is definitely a step in the right direction, but it has taken EPA far too long to make this much-needed change. We should not forget, however, that EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson sent a proposed standard of 65 ppb to the White House in August […]
Joseph Tomain | October 1, 2015
Two of the most important aspects of the Clean Power Plan (CPP) are the flexibility afforded states as they design compliance strategies and the plan’s openness to all energy resources. A state can satisfy its emission-reduction targets through the use of cleaner or more efficient coal-fired generation, natural gas or nuclear power as well as […]
Katie Tracy | September 28, 2015
Lawrence Daquan “Day” Davis, 21, died tragically on his first day of work at his first job, as a “temp worker” at a Bacardi bottling facility in Jacksonville, Florida. He began his shift within 15 minutes of arriving at the facility, after completing some paperwork and watching a very brief safety video. Although working in […]
Robert Verchick | September 22, 2015
Center for Progressive Reform President Robert R.M. Verchick issued the following statement today in response to the burgeoning Volkswagen emissions scandal: With the Volkswagen emissions scandal, hard on the heels of the GM settlement, can anyone doubt the importance of strong regulation and tough enforcement? One automotive giant let a safety problem fester for a […]
Robert Verchick | September 22, 2015
Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush released a plan meant to make it harder for federal agencies to make rules that protect public health and the environment. That might help some big corporations. But it makes everyday Americans much less safe. The idea is to jam up the federal rule making process with so many requirements that hardly […]
Erin Kesler | September 21, 2015
Today, Stewart Parnell, former peanut company executive was sentenced to 28 years in prison for his role in a salmonella outbreak that resulted in the deaths of nine people and the illness of 174. CPR Member Scholar and University of Maryland School of Law professor Rena Steinzor issued the following statement in response to the […]
Rena Steinzor | September 17, 2015
CPR Member Scholar Rena Steinzor reacted to today’s announcement of a settlement between General Motors and the Justice Department over charges stemming from the company’s failure to disclose a deadly ignition defect it millions of its cars. Steinzor said: This settlement is shamefully weak. GM and its executives knew for years that they had a […]
Erin Kesler | September 16, 2015
Today, the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee is holding a Hearing on legislation focused on the regulatory system entitled, “A Review of Regulatory Reform Proposals.” CPR Vice-President and Wake Forest University School of Law professor Sidney Shapiro will be testifying. According to his testimony: It is a good thing that Congress has directed agencies to issue […]
Thomas McGarity | September 14, 2015
At long last, the Food and Drug Administration has promulgated two critical regulations implementing the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011 (FSMA). The regulations flesh out the statute’s requirements for facilities that process human food and animal feed. Of the regulations that FDA has proposed in order to implement the FSMA, these are perhaps the […]