House Votes to Overturn Health-Protective Air Quality Rule; Senate Must Not Follow Suit

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval, voting to overturn an important rule, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Methane Emissions and Waste Reduction Incentive Program. In response to these votes, the American Lung Association President and CEO Harold Wimmer issued the following statement:

“Today, a majority of House members voted to overturn commonsense safeguards that protect people’s lungs. The Lung Association is disappointed at their failure to prioritize people’s health and calls on U.S. Senators not to follow suit. The Senate must not vote to overturn this safeguard. 

“Today’s vote would overturn a good program to help ensure the oil and gas industry cleans up methane emissions. If allowed to move forward, this safeguard would address our warming climate and help reduce waste and air pollution.”

“Curbing methane emissions from the oil and gas industry is critical to protecting public health. Methane gas is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide in its warming power as a greenhouse gas. Methane has been shown to leak into the atmosphere during every stage of the oil and gas production process. Climate change is a health emergency and is worsening health outcomes in communities across the nation. The Methane Emissions and Waste Reduction Incentive Program would hold oil and gas companies accountable for wasted methane emissions and require them to deploy cost-effective and successful technologies to reduce emissions – good news for public health and for the industry.

“The House is also expected to vote this week on Department of Energy efficiency standards for tankless water heaters. Making appliances more efficient is a simple way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve indoor and outdoor air quality, and help families save money on electricity bills. In fact, the Department of Energy estimated that improving appliance energy efficiency would cut 2.5 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions over 30 years, while saving consumers nearly $1 trillion. If the tankless water heater efficiency rule is overturned, people will miss out on some of these benefits and we urge the House to reject this Congressional Review Act Resolution.

“The American Lung Association urges Congress to vote no on Congressional Review Act Resolutions of Disapproval to overturn these health-protective safeguards.”