Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli is going after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) again, this time over proposed utility regulations he says will cost Virginians dearly in terms of jobs and higher power bills.
Cuccinelli told the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Tuesday that proposed national emissions standard would increase electricity rates in Virginia between 10 and 35 percent and “devastate” Southwestern Virginia, which is dependent on the coal industry for jobs.
It would be “a financial death blow for businesses struggling to meet payroll,” he told members of Congress.
He also pointed out the EPA “openly admits it did not gather sufficient information to calculate the potential job losses and total costs to the American economy due to its regulations.”
If adopted, the new rule would also force the closure of many power plants. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission estimates that 80 gigawatts of electricity generation would be lost – the equivalent of 40 Hoover Dams operating at peak production.
“How long can we pretend that these costs do not exist and that every regulation will bring large improvements for little expense?” Cuccinelli asked.
Last month, Cuccinelli also accused EPA of violating its own rules by using outside data to conclude that greenhouse gases emissions such as carbon dioxide are harmful to human health.
