House votes to block EPA regs on coal-fired electricity plants

The House voted Thursday to override a proposed Environmental Protection Agency rule limiting carbon emissions from future coal-fired electricity plants. Members passed the Electricity Security and Affordability Act, H.R. 3826, in a mostly partisan 229-183 vote; 10 Democrats voted for passage. The bill is a response to a proposed EPA rule Republicans say would require new coal-fired plants to achieve an emission standard that is virtually impossible using today's widely available technology. Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), the bill's sponsor, says that means the rule will effectively ban new power plants. "In January of next year, it is anticipated that they will finalize a rule from EPA that will make it impossible to build a new coal-powered plant in America," he said during Wednesday debate. "That is hard to believe that that can be the situation in our great country, particularly since 40 percent of our electricity comes from coal."...more