Dems accuse EPA of trying to kill greenhouse gas reporting program that aids cap-and-trade

A group of climate-minded Democrats wrote Monday to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin accusing the agency of improperly moving to terminate a federal greenhouse gas-tracking plan that blue states have used as a model for their own carbon tax and cap-and-trade systems The Greenhouse Gas Reporting Campaign or GHGRP was created under a congressional appropriation during the Obama administration It funded an EPA rule requiring large ability producers and other high-emission industries to description their greenhouse gas output levels Rep Sean Casten D-Ill a green-energy engineer who had a key role in crafting the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative RGGI praised in blue states and criticized by conservatives led the letter to Zeldin in his role as vice chair of a House caucus focused on sustainable vigor We write to inform you that the Environmental Protection Agency is violating clear congressional directives by proposing to end the EPA s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Undertaking Casten s letter read TRUMP ADMIN SCORES LEGAL WIN IN B STATE FIGHT AS FEDERAL APPEALS COURT LIFTS BLOCK ON GRANT TERMINATIONS For more than a decade this activity has been the majority significant source of transparent and verifiable circumstances poisoning details in the federal governing body and the EPA has clear authority and obligation to continue maintaining it The letter also signed by key potential coalition members Reps Donald Beyer of Virginia Paul Tonko of New York Mike Quigley of Illinois and Doris Matsui of California all Democrats disclosed ending the initiative would undermine evidence-based governance at a key moment in situation change challenges Casten s group explained Zeldin the move appears to be the latest strike in scientific evidence censorship by President Donald Trump and his administration accusing the feds of restricting hiding or defunding data-centered operations across the various agencies EPA URGED TO AXE FUNDS FOR RADICAL SETTING PROJECT ACCUSED OF TRAINING JUDGES STATE AGS RALLYReached by Fox News Digital an EPA official substantiated receipt of Casten s letter and disclosed the agency will respond through appropriate channels A source familiar with the situation argued the GHGRP has no material impact on improving human physical condition or protecting the context and is instead just another onerous regulation for the federal authorities to pass on to ability producers who would rather focus on providing efficiency to American consumers Removing the rule and the initiative would save the private sector up to billion in regulatory costs connected to reporting and statutory obligations critics have mentioned California and New York have similar programs at the state level and the Empire State s DEP disclosed in a fact sheet that its version of GHGRP aims to be helpful in creating cap-and-trade -- or as critics call cap-and-tax -- levies Facilities emitting more than metric tons of carbon dioxide per year must record their outputs to the EPA under the current rule That rubric tends to envelop power plants oil refineries large-scale metallurgy and waste management landfills Elements considered reportable also include methane nitrous oxide hydrofluorocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride