Senator Joe Manchin (D., W.Va.), chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, is launching a blockade of President Joe Biden’s EPA nominees over the new emissions rules for power plants the agency will soon propose.
Under the EPA’s new rules, almost all coal and gas-fired power plants will have to cut or capture nearly all of their carbon dioxide emissions by 2040. At present, fewer than 20 of the nation’s 3,400 coal and gas-powered plants capture emissions from their smokestacks. These plants generate around 60 percent of America’s electricity.
“This Administration is determined to advance its radical climate agenda and has made it clear they are hellbent on doing everything in their power to regulate coal and gas-fueled power plants out of existence, no matter the cost to energy security and reliability,” wrote Manchin in a statement, adding that every member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission who has appeared before his committee has agreed that eliminating coal today or in the near future is impracticable if there’s to be a reliable electric grid.
Manchin explained there isn’t an “adequate plan to replace the lost baseload generation,” adding that the new EPA rule is part of “a broader regulatory agenda being rolled out designed to kill the fossil industry by a thousand cuts.”
While the president has moderated on select energy projects, approving an Alaska oil drill over the objections of climate activists, he has been otherwise aggressive in fighting climate change. Last month, Biden announced the strictest-ever emissions standards in his ongoing bid to remake the auto industry. He also created an Office of Environmental Justice.
The West Virginia senator argued that the new rules are government overreach and do not have congressional authorization.
“Neither the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law nor the IRA gave new authority to regulate power plant emission standards…I fear that this Administration’s commitment to their extreme ideology overshadows their responsibility to ensure long-lasting energy and economic security,” he explained.
Manchin was already furious with the administration when it comes to the Inflation Reduction Act’s implementation. Rules that require automakers to show that their batteries contain certain levels of materials originating in North America or in countries with which the United States has a free trade agreement were crucial to securing his support. However, Manchin has taken issue with the scope afforded to Treasury to determine which countries America has a free trade agreement with.
The West Virginia senator’s threats carry weight given the fact that he has sunk Biden’s nominees in the past. Gigi Sohn, who was nominated to the Federal Communications Commission, withdrew after Manchin’s opposition. Manchin also vocally opposed Neera Tanden’s nomination for OMB director early in Biden’s presidency.