House Committee Passes Rep. Jenkins' Social Cost of Carbon Bill

Statement

The House Natural Resources Committee on Thursday passed legislation introduced by U.S. Representative Evan Jenkins (R-W.Va.) to prohibit federal agencies from using flawed metrics when writing new regulations.

H.R. 3117, the Transparency and Honesty in Energy Regulations Act (THERA), would prohibit the federal government from using the flawed social cost of carbon and social cost of methane metrics in the rulemaking process.

"The Obama administration used biased estimates like the social cost of carbon to push through its anti-coal regulations. These models hide the true economic costs of the EPA's energy and environmental rules, which have eliminated jobs in West Virginia and raised the price of electricity for families. We are now one step closer to ensuring that no future administration can hide behind flawed formulas to justify their job-killing regulations and bring more transparency to the rulemaking process," Rep. Jenkins said.

A companion bill is sponsored in the Senate by Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla.

The bill would bar the use of the social cost of carbon, methane and nitrous oxide in energy and environment rules. This legislation would provide certainty and build upon a recent Trump executive order that canceled the government's use of these metrics. It would also ensure that the regulatory process adheres to strict cost-benefit guidelines and prohibit the use of such metrics unless subsequently authorized by Congress.

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