Good call by the president, halting EPA's proposed tightening of the national ozone standard.

Saddling a limp economy with a new regulation that could kill millions of jobs while adding $1 trillion a year in new compliance costs, didn't make much sense. By some estimates, 85 percent of the country would've been in non-compliance with the stricter standard - one that Howard Feldman, API's director of regulatory and scientific affairs, last month called "incompatible with ... what most Americans do to earn a living."

The administration decided the timing wasn't right. In a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, Cass Sunstein of the White House's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs said it was "problematic" to re-do the ozone rule this year when regular review of the standard is c... more »

The administration is trumpeting a newly released plan it says could save $10 billion over five years by eliminating hundreds of regulations and streamlining the federal bureaucracy. Cass Sunstein, administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs:

"Today, we are announcing that agencies are releasing their final regulatory reform plans, including hundreds of initiatives that will reduce costs, simplify the system, and eliminate redundancy and inconsistency. As the plans demonstrate, a great deal has been achieved in a short time. Significant burden-reducing rules have been finalized or publicly proposed from the Department of Labor, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Transportation."

Writing in the Wall Street Journal [subscription requi... more »

When you think about it, the Environmental Protection Agency is asking an awful lot from the country with its proposed, more restrictive standard on ozone. Underline the word "awful":

• 7.3 million U.S. jobs could be lost by 2020, according to a Manufacturers Alliance (MAPI) study.
• An additional $1 trillion in new regulatory costs per year between 2020 and 2030 again, according to the MAPI study.
• About 85 percent of the country in non-compliance with the new standard, including pristine areas like Yellowstone National Park. More below.

Here's the kicker: EPA has no real idea how the country would get in compliance. In its proposal the agency suggests new technologies will make compliance possible. Sounds like a leap of faith ... off a cliff. Howard Feldman, API's director of regulatory and... more »

The Environmental Protection Agency is at it again - trying to implement unrealistic regulations that will severely impact our economy and job growth.This time EPA has targeted U.S. ozone standards - also known as national ambient air quality standards, or NAAQS - two years before their scheduled review under the Clean Air Act. U.S. News World Report frames the debate:

At issue: The EPA's plan go[es] far beyond former President Bush's effort to tighten ozone standards way in advance of the planned review in 2013. It could push much of the nation into non-attainment status under the Clean Air Act, forcing major changes to improve air quality.

Just how much of the United States would be affected? The EPA's aggressive air quality proposal would likely push more than 85 percent of U.S. counti... more »

Editor's Note: API praised the leadership of Chairman Upton and other members of Congress from both parties who voted to stop EPA from regulating greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act. Marty Durbin, API executive vice president, called today's action an important step toward stopping the EPA's regulations and called on the president not to ignore this bipartisan vote:

"We welcome today's bipartisan vote to stop the EPA from overstepping its authority and to restore the Clean Air Act to its original purpose. We must continue to improve air quality, but we must also protect Americans from higher energy bills and from regulations that could cost hundreds of thousands of American jobs.

"We also welcome the support of a clear majority of senators, including 17 Democrats, who yesterday suppor... more »