
June 12, 2024
Dear Members of Congress,
On behalf of Independent Women’s Voice, I strongly applaud the introduction of the bicameral disapproval resolution by Senator Shelly Moore Capito (R-WV) and Representative Troy Balderson (R-OH) to undo the recently finalized Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Clean Power Plan 2.0 rule. Independent Women’s Voice fights for women and their loved ones by effectively expanding support for policy solutions that aren’t just well-intended, but actually enhance people’s freedom, opportunities, and well-being.
Under the newly finalized EPA rule, existing coal plants and new natural gas plants face permanent closure unless they install carbon capture technologies that aren’t yet commercially viable. It elevates radical net-zero climate goals over grid reliability. This new rule requires a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2032 and puts 60% of baseload power generated by coal and natural gas plants at risk.
As I recently noted at RealClear Energy, the EPA’s authority over regulating greenhouse gasses was limited by the landmark Supreme Court ruling West Virginia v. EPA, which challenged the original Obama-era Clean Power Plan. This rule is in clear violation of that decision.
CPP 2.0 would replace reliable baseload power sources with intermittent, unreliable highly-subsidized sources like wind and solar. Wind generation, which is reliable for about 33.5% of the year, decreased for the first time since the 1990s. Solar, on the other hand, is only dependable for 24.9% of the year and many projects have recently been deemed “uneconomical.”
The EPA’s rule will unfairly mandate coal and natural gas plants to adopt carbon capture and shortage (CCS) technologies. This is a costly endeavor, especially for something that isn’t yet commercially viable, that will incur more costs for these energy producers. More troubling is the CCS could decrease power plant efficiency by at least 14%. It’s also reported that natural gas and coal plants retrofitted with first-generation CCS technology can expect a 50% and 70 to 80% increase in electricity costs, respectively.
The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) warned in its December 2023 Long-Term Assessment report that obtuse policies like CPP 2.0 “have the potential to influence generators” to close down their plants.
With increased electricity generation demand in the U.S., the CPP 2.0 rule is an unworkable, extreme rule that puts our grid, economy, and national security at risk.
For all these reasons, we urge the House and the Senate to work toward the swift passage of this resolution of disapproval. IWV thanks Senator Moore Capito and Representative Balderson for their leadership on this issue.
Respectfully,
Gabriella Hoffman
Director, Center for Energy and Conservation
Independent Women’s Voice