Ruling Comes on Third Anniversary of Waxman-Markey House Passage
 
WASHINGTON (June 26, 2012) – On the third anniversary of House passage of the historic Waxman-Markey climate and clean energy bill, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit today defended the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate heat-trapping emissions, and the sound science behind dangerous climate change. The court denied four petitions from the fossil fuel industry seeking to invalidate the “endangerment finding”, the scientific finding that gives authority to the EPA to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, because they are a danger to public health and welfare, and three regulations based on it, including auto standards that are helping to save consumers money at the gas pump and to decrease oil imports.
 
Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), co-author of the Waxman-Markey bill, the top Democrat on the Natural Resources Committee and a senior member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, released the following statement:
 
“Today’s ruling is a grand slam for the EPA and the health of the American people, and another strikeout for the fossil fuel special interests trying to block clean energy progress. The DC Appeals Court now joins the Supreme Court in saying that climate science is sound and the EPA has the authority to regulate dangerous heat-trapping emissions under the Clean Air Act.
 
“Three years ago today, the House passed the Waxman-Markey climate and clean energy bill, and the problems addressed by that legislation remain with us today. With the science affirmed and the authority granted, EPA should continue their important work to address the greatest challenge of our generation in dealing with global warming.  At the same time, Congressional Republicans should stop denying the science and start working with Democrats to craft more comprehensive and bipartisan responses to the threat posed by global warming.”
 
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