The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) has expressed approval of Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin’s announcement regarding the proposed repeal of two significant regulations from the Biden administration. The Clean Power Plan 2.0, which regulates greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, and amendments to the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards are set to be reconsidered.
Daren Bakst, director of CEI’s Center for Energy and Environment, praised these proposed changes as necessary reforms. Bakst criticized the Biden EPA’s greenhouse gas regulation for power plants, stating that it threatens electricity reliability and affordability by eliminating coal and natural gas sources in favor of wind and solar energy. He claimed that this would result in higher electricity prices, disproportionately affecting low-income Americans.
Bakst further commented on the repeal of amendments to the 2024 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards, arguing that past rules have overstated benefits while incurring significant costs. According to Bakst, “the costs were 1,600-2400 times greater than the benefits.”
Marlo Lewis, a senior fellow at CEI, also spoke against the Biden EPA’s May 2024 greenhouse gas emission standards rule for fossil-fuel power plants. He argued that its carbon capture and storage requirements would reduce coal generation drastically and hinder new natural gas baseload generation projects.
Lewis referenced a Supreme Court ruling in West Virginia v. EPA (2022), suggesting that the Biden EPA overstepped its authority without clear congressional authorization.
Both Bakst and Lewis commended Administrator Zeldin for what they consider steps toward restoring economic liberty and sensible regulation within the electric power sector.
