Safeguarding Public Health and the Environment

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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A Galling Example of White House Regulatory Delay

Jul 17, 2007 by Matthew Madia

The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) is sitting on a rule which would set speed limits for large shipping vessels traveling along the eastern seaboard during the migration season of the North Atlantic right whale. The standard would reduce the number of whales killed in collisions with ships. Because the rule is considered "major," the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) submitted the rule to OIRA for the standard review period prescribed by Executive Order 12866.

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Bill Would Force EPA to Decide on State Petitions

Jul 16, 2007 by Matthew Madia

In December 2005, California petitioned EPA to allow the state to develop its own vehicle emissions regulations. Since then, EPA has obstinately refused to decide either way. Only recently did Administrator Stephen Johnson set a timetable, promising action by the end of the year.

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Senator Presses EPA on White House Interference in Ozone Standard

Jul 11, 2007 by Matthew Madia

Today, a subcommittee of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is holding a hearing on EPA's recent proposal to revise the national ozone standard. EPA has proposed tightening the standard, but not to the extent recommended by its own staff scientists and advisors.

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Federal Government Kept Nuclear Accident Secret

Details on an accidental release of highly-enriched uranium at a nuclear fuel processing plant in Tennessee were kept secret from the public and Congress by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for thirteen months.

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EPA Suspends Fish Kill Rule

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has suspended a fish protection rule in response to a January court decision. The decision vacated parts of the rule, which White House officials had edited and weakened. EPA will now have to begin a new round of rulemaking in order to address the ecological problem.

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EPA Delays Recycling Rule, White House Lurks in the Shadows

Jul 6, 2007 by Matthew Madia

EPA is putting the brakes on an important recycling rule, according to BNA news service (subscription). The rule has been in the works for well over a year, and EPA recently indicated it would announce a proposed rule this fall. Now, EPA says it will issue only an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, a sort of baby step in the regulatory process.

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EPA Considers Industry Allies for Key Advisory Committee

Jul 3, 2007 by Matthew Madia

Scientific advisory committees provide important, impartial advice on a wide range of issues. A committee's recommendations provide a strong analytical and scientific basis for agency rulemaking activity. EPA's Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) is one of the federal government's most important.

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No Money No Problems

Jun 28, 2007 by Matthew Madia

On Jan. 3, EPA published a proposed rule potentially allowing "major source" air pollutant emitters to be downgraded to "area source" emitters. Major sources are subject to maximum achievable control technology (MACT), which often results in a significant reduction in air pollution. Area sources are not subject to the MACT standard. Under the current rules, major sources retain that designation permanently — a policy EPA refers to as "once-in, always-in." The proposed rule would repeal the current policy.

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Latest Watcher

Jun 27, 2007 by Matthew Madia

Be sure to check out the latest issue of our biweekly newsletter, The Watcher. Regulatory policy articles this time: EPA Announces Proposed Smog Standard House Legislation Would Force Regulatory Review House Bills Address Mining Health and Safety Shortfalls

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Congress Moves to Create a Greenhouse Gas Inventory

In an effort to combat the causes of climate change, proposals to collect and publicly disclose accurate information on releases of greenhouse gases are moving forward in Congress. Two recently introduced bills seek to create an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, and during the week of June 18, the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee included a provision in its bill that would require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to create such an inventory.

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