Boston (April 16, 2025) - Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee and co-Chair of the Senate Climate Change Task Force, released the following statement after President Donald Trump signed an executive order calling for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and more to sunset environmental regulations. Several of these regulations were championed by Senator Markey to make America’s appliances more efficient, save families money at the pump, and curb dangerous climate pollution.

“Donald Trump doesn’t just want to roll back the environmental and climate gains we’ve made over the past four years, he wants to erase the progress we’ve made over 150 years —all to boost the bottom lines of Big Oil and Big Gas,” said Senator Markey. “We cannot sacrifice public health for industry wealth.

“I've fought for years, even decades, to put laws on the books to keep the people of Massachusetts and the entire country safe, healthy, and prosperous. I will not let Trump and his Big Oil boosters undo these hard-earned gains. I will continue fighting to stop this Administration from putting polluters over people and our planet.”

The order affects multiple pieces of keystone energy and environment legislation led by Senator Markey, including:

  • the National Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987, which established mandatory nationwide appliance efficiency standards;
  • the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which created the fuel economy standards that save families money;
  • the Energy Policy Act of 1992, in which Senator Markey successfully included an open-access transmission requirement that created the modern grid; and
  • the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, which regulates the safe and responsible storage of nuclear waste and in which Senator Markey authored the provision that gives states the power to deny the siting of nuclear waste within their borders.

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