Comments from Several Trade Organizations Submitted to EPA Regarding the Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Greenhouse Gases Under the Clean Air Act

The undersigned trade associations represent businesses from virtually every sector of the American economy. All of the signatories to this letter are committed to taking positive steps to address the issue of global climate change. However, all of these same entities will also be harmed if the Environmental Protection Agency regulates greenhouse gas emissions under the existing Clean Air Act (CAA).

EPA’s Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) on this issue would set forth a multitude of costly, burdensome CAA programs it would use to regulate all of the undersigned businesses. As EPA acknowledges in the ANPR, a finding of “endangerment” for motor
vehicles—a decision EPA is required to confront as a result of the Supreme Court’s holding in Massachusetts v. EPA—would likely trigger not only vehicle controls but also invasive CO2 controls on buildings and other stationary emissions sources. Four programs that would be triggered are: National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS); New Source Performance Standards (NSPS); Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD); and Title V.