Supporting Transparent Regulatory and Environmental Actions in Mining Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. JENKINS of West Virginia. I thank the chairman.

I rise today in support of the pending legislation, H.R. 1644, the STREAM Act.

Appalachia is suffering. Years of burdensome regulations from this administration have had a devastating impact on coal. West Virginia miners, families, and businesses are paying the price.

Since 2012, according to The Wall Street Journal, 27 coal mining companies in Appalachia have filed for bankruptcy. In just the past 4 years, we have seen 7,000 coal miners lose their jobs in West Virginia. Why? Because each and every day, President Obama's EPA and the Office of Surface Mining are regulating coal mines out of business and putting miners on the unemployment line.

Coal miners are the heart and soul of communities in West Virginia, and the significant layoffs we are experiencing are simply heartbreaking. The President, the EPA, and the OSM continue to ignore the economic pain they are inflicting.

The stream buffer zone rule, which the STREAM Act would halt, is yet another example of unnecessary regulation, one that will increase energy costs for American families and businesses.

The OSM's new stream buffer zone rule will lead to thousands more job losses in West Virginia and across the Nation. An independent study found it would eliminate at least 40,000 direct coal mining jobs on top of the 42,000 indirect jobs and other jobs that have been lost just since 2011. Even OSM's own analysis estimates that this rule would result in the loss of thousands of jobs. That does not include the thousands of jobs that depend on coal indirectly: our Nation's small businesses, equipment manufacturers, transportation, and others.

Mr. Chairman, this is unacceptable. It is also the reason why I helped secure a provision in the omnibus that mandates that OSM work with the States. I support the STREAM Act, and I encourage its passage.

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