Lubbock Chamber of Commerce officials cheered another victory in its “Full Court Press” against regulatory overreach as the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit late last week stayed implementation of the EPA’s federal takeover of the regional haze air permitting process in Texas and Oklahoma. In April, the U.S. Chamber, the Texas Association of Business (TAB), Lubbock Chamber and 22 other local Texas chambers of commerce as well as industry groups intervened in support of a lawsuit brought by the State of Texas challenging EPA on the matter.
“EPA has admitted the rule would cost at least $2 billion for companies in Texas to implement in the next few years. As a result, the rule could force some power plants to go offline, and drive up electricity costs for all businesses in Texas. What’s more, the “regional haze rule” would have little to no benefits for Texas: EPA admits that the new regulation’s “visibility” improvements are virtually imperceptible to the human eye,” said Beth Bridges, Lubbock Chamber of Commerce Chairwoman.
The Clean Air Act’s (CAA) “regional haze” program seeks to limit or prevent “visibility” impairment in certain areas. Although state air quality regulators usually have the primary authority to implement CAA standards, in this instance, the EPA disapproved of Texas’ own proposed regulations to limit regional haze and instead took over Texas’s regulatory authority by imposing a draconian “federal implementation plan” (or “FIP”). This new “FIP” imposes stringent new limitations on certain air emissions.
“The Chamber’s most fundamental responsibility is to advocate on behalf of the business community,” said Bridges. “We will continue to fight for job creators and protect the Lubbock economy from costly regulations.”
The victory in federal court is the second in less than a month for the Lubbock Chamber’s litigation efforts to fight overregulation. In late June, Senior U.S. District Judge Sam Cummings stayed the U.S. Department of Labor’s “Persuader Rule,” in a lawsuit led by the National Federation of Independent Business and joined by other plaintiffs including the Lubbock Chamber and TAB.
The Lubbock Chamber of Commerce represents over 2,000 businesses and over 79,000 employees on the South Plains which accounts for over $2 billion in annual household earnings in Lubbock and West Texas. The Chamber has twice earned the distinguished 5-Star Accreditation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and is a two-time Chamber of the Year recognized by the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives.
(News release from the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce)
