Some members of the 112th Congress have vowed to roll back virtually all health, safety and environmental protections for Americans. These politicians ignore the science, the law and the economic analysis of the deadly costs of pollution when they fight to allow industry to release more toxic chemicals, including mercury, into our air and water. For 40 years, air and water quality in the United States have been improving. Now some would dismantle basic safeguards rather than holding polluters accountable. NRDC experts report on this organized assault on all Americans' health and safety.
Posted May 22, 2012 by John Walke in Curbing Pollution, Health and the Environment, U.S. Law and Policy
What does it say about the character of a Congress that would compel government officials to lie to you and me about the healthiness of the air we breathe?28 members of Congress [pdf] voted to do that last week when the...continued→
Posted May 11, 2012 by Deron Lovaas in Moving Beyond Oil
The transportation and energy debate has suffered this past year. Analysts and industry types from Dan Yergin to the National Petroleum Council, and many others, have pointed breathlessly to methods developed by the industry (horizontal drilling, hydraulic fracturing) and consequent...continued→
Posted May 7, 2012 by Deron Lovaas in Moving Beyond Oil
The authors of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) study released last week must have been sniffing gas fumes when they drastically overestimated the effects of the proposed fuel economy standards on the Highway Trust Fund. The study claims that proposed changes...continued→
Posted May 3, 2012 by Deron Lovaas in Moving Beyond Oil
Did you see this eye-catching opinion piece about the polarization in Congress drawn from a new book by a couple of authors who wrote The Broken Branch: How Congress is Failing America and How to Get it Back on Track (which is worth a...continued→
Posted April 26, 2012 by Deron Lovaas in Moving Beyond Oil
Here’s the state-of-play with the transportation bill:The Senate and House have appointed conferees from leadership and the various committees with jurisdiction over the bill, 14 from the Senate (8 Democrats and 6 Republicans) and 33 from the House (20 Republicans...continued→
Posted April 23, 2012 by John Walke in Curbing Pollution, Health and the Environment, U.S. Law and Policy
Sometimes a moment captures dirty, squirming truths like a rat trap. That happened last week in the Senate. The Senate’s clean air subcommittee convened a hearing on EPA’s mercury and air toxics standards (MATS) for power plants that burn coal and oil....continued→
Posted April 18, 2012 by Deron Lovaas in Moving Beyond Oil
Here's the state-of-play with transportation law: The Senate passed a bill, Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century, MAP-21, by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 74-22. This lobbed a nice easy proposal to the chamber on the other side...continued→
Posted April 16, 2012 by John Walke in Curbing Pollution, Health and the Environment, U.S. Law and Policy
What do gasoline prices have to do with eliminating Americans' 40+ year right to clean air? Nothing – and everything to some House Republicans. In a gratuitous legislative assault that is cynical even by jaded Washington standards, Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY)...continued→
Posted March 29, 2012 by Deron Lovaas in Moving Beyond Oil
It's simply inexcusable. Senators from both sides of the aisle worked hard to pass a two-year transportation bill, MAP-21. The President supports it. And in the House, it would very likely pass by a wide margin with Republican and Democratic...continued→
Posted March 27, 2012 by Deron Lovaas in Moving Beyond Oil
It's only Tuesday and already it's another disappointing week for transportation law. The House GOP has shelved its 90-day extension due to - surprise! - inability to get the votes to pass it. A 60-day extension is in the offing...continued→
