NEW SENATE REPORT: EPA'S POLICIES HARMING AMERICA'S MANUFACTURING BASE

We found this part of the report alarming:

Despite the President’s rhetoric, the economy is not turning around and
people are not getting back to work. When President Obama took office, the
unemployment rate was 7.6 percent; it’s now 9.6 percent.3 President Obama’s
central economic policy—namely, the $814 billion stimulus package passed in
2009—has manifestly failed to lower unemployment.4 "The Obama team has
blown it," said David Resler of Nomura Securities.

The Obama Administration’s Regulatory Uncertainty

Meanwhile, prospects for a robust economic recovery are bleak. There are
many reasons for this: one stems from the regulatory uncertainty created by the Obama Administration. Anti-business rules and regulations across federal agencies and departments have left employers wary of hiring or expanding. According to economist Mark Zandi,
businesses “are just nervous about a great deal of the policy uncertainty
coming out of Washington.”

In June, Ivan Seidenberg, the chairman of the Business Roundtable, an
organization representing more than 12 million employees, said the Obama
Administration is responsible for creating “an increasingly hostile
environment for investment and job creation.” He said further that policy
changes and regulatory actions “harm our ability…to grow private-sector jobs in the U.S.”

What do the new regulations mean to our oil refineries? Will the new regulations put some of the smaller refineries out of business that don't have the resources to upgrade while costing the big oil companies that own the huge refineries huge dollar mounts to comply? Is this what Obama and his EPA are up to -- putting refineries out of business so we have to rely on foreign oil.

At the same time, they are causing a hostile environment for other industries that will be more likely to move jobs overseas to produce their products.

EPA is an agency out of control and needs its wings clipped. In fact, EPA should no longer be their own agency but be brought back under one of the cabinet positions like Energy. They have done enough harm in the last 20 years with their ozone figures that keep decreasing the amount of particulates you can have in the air so that a farm in the middle of nowhere soon will not be in compliance.

Their reformulated gas regulations required in a lot of areas to protect the air quality is being determined to cause may cause pinging or premature burn in engines with excessive carbon deposits which could lead to needless wear and tear on the engines of vehicles that are forced to use it at 10 cents more a gallon. EPA found that the use of oxygenated fuels and RFG causes a small decrease (1-3%) in fuel economy. Now we learn that it takes more fuel to drive the same distance with reformulated gas so in addition to the 10 cents, it is also costing more for gas and causing wear and tear on the engines of newer vehicles. Doesn't seem to be a lot of common sense shown by the EPA especially when you learn they keep dropping the numbers for air quality to be in compliance.

This report released by Senator Inhofe is a real eye opener and needs widespread distribution. When you read the report of what the EPA is doing to manufacturing in America, it should make you livid and demand that the EPA be brought under control.  As we said before, we don't believe it should have ever been made a cabinet position as they have become uncontrollable especially under Democrat Administrations when they get a leftist in charge.

Once again Senator Inhofe and Republican members of the minority on this committee have come through for the American people. It is up to us to put pressure on the Administration and Democrats to make sure manufacturing is protected. How ironic that the Republicans who the unions work against in elections are the ones standing up for manufacturing jobs to stay in the United States while the Democrats with their regulations on manufacturing are ensuring jobs are sent overseas. You would think the unions would get a clue one of these days.

NEW SENATE REPORT: EPA'S POLICIES HARMING AMERICA'S MANUFACTURING BASE

Jobs, Economic Growth, and Environmental Progress at Risk

Link to Senate Report

Link to Press Release

FOX NEWS: Senate Report Warns of Obama Job-Killing Regulations:





EPW Report Shows New EPA Rules Will Cost More Than 800,000 jobs -- Listen to Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) interview interview with Ed Morrissey:





Washington, DC-Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, released today a new EPW Minority staff report titled, "EPA's Anti-Industrial Policy: Threatening Jobs and America's Manufacturing Base," which chronicles a series of EPA proposals that could destroy hundreds of thousands of jobs, many in the industrial heartland, raise energy prices for consumers, and undermine the global competitiveness of America's manufacturers.

The report reviewed the following proposals:

- New standards for commercial and industrial boilers: up to 798,250 jobs at risk;

- New standards for Portland Cement plants: up to 18 cement plants at risk of shutting down, threatening nearly 1,800 direct jobs and 9,000 indirect jobs;

- The Endangerment Finding/Tailoring Rules for Greenhouse Gas Emissions: higher energy costs; jobs moving overseas; severe economic impacts on the poor, the elderly, minorities, and those on fixed incomes; 6.1 million sources subject to EPA control and regulation; and

- The revised National Ambient Air Quality Standard for ozone: severe restrictions on job creation and business expansion in hundreds of counties nationwide.

Sen. Inhofe:

"I have great personal respect for EPA Administrator Jackson, but we disagree fundamentally on EPA's policies and the economic and financial harm they pose for consumers, workers, and small businesses. The record as outlined in this Minority report, which includes EPA's own analysis, is very clear: EPA will make consumers pay more for electricity, shut down the local factory, and give Chinese firms a decisive advantage over America's manufacturers, which are struggling to meet the agency's bureaucratic mandates.

"The irony of EPA's agenda is that, along with higher costs, it will fail to provide the American people with meaningful environmental benefits. In some cases, it will actually impose environmental harm, as EPA's ever-increasing mandates shift production to China, where technology and standards don't measure up to our own.

"Our task ahead is to bring balance back to federal clean air policy, so that economic growth, job creation, and environmental progress can coexist, rather than be in conflict with each other."

U.S. Sen. David Vitter (R-La.): "The regulatory obligations under the Obama administration's EPA are set to kick the legs out from an already limping economy. It will be almost impossible for Congress to compensate for the jobs that will be lost under the regulatory burden of an ambitious and ever-growing EPA bureaucratic scheme that is crushing every sector of American business."

U.S. Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo): "When we ask 'Where are the jobs?' this report answers that by showing how the Obama Environmental Protection Agency is killing American jobs and sending them overseas."

U.S. Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio): "During my tenure on the Senate EPW Committee, I have worked hard to enact common sense environment and energy policies that protect our environment while enhancing our economic competitiveness. Time after time, these efforts have been met by firm resistance from environmental zealots and an out-of-touch federal bureaucracy.

"Now, when America families are struggling under the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression, EPA has launched an aggressive campaign of regulations, red tape and backdoor energy taxes that will undercut our efforts to create jobs and further erode America's global competitiveness. We should be doing everything we can to create jobs and grow our economy - that includes stopping unelected bureaucrats from raising energy costs and using regulatory red tape to stifle our economy. We must put our nation's environment and energy policy back into Congress' hands."

Source:  Email and EPW Blog