Wilson applauds Trump Administration for returning Power to States

On Wednesday, Aug. 22, South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson applauded President Trump and the Environmental Protection Agency for proposing the “Affordable Clean Energy” rule to replace the Obama administration’s so-called Clean Power Plan, or CPP. Attorney General Wilson said, “President Trump and the EPA have restored the rule of law and returned power back to the states. The new rule also adds some much-needed certainty to our energy industry, both for regulators and for consumers.” A bipartisan coalition of state attorneys general filed legal challenges to the Obama administration’s blatant overreach of executive power. A total of 150 entities, including 27 states, 24 trade associations, 37 rural electric co-ops, and three labor unions challenged the rule. A bipartisan majority of the U.S. Congress also formally disapproved of CPP. The attorneys general won a historic stay from the Supreme Court of the United States, which stopped the so-called “Clean Power Plan.” The Court had never before stayed a rule while a lower court was reviewing it. Under the EPA’s proposed new rule, states will have the power to reduce emissions and provide modern, reliable power at an affordable cost. The states will establish standards of performance for existing sources in line with the EPA’s emission guidelines. The new plan would also encourage existing power plants to invest in the latest, most efficient technologies. The EPA’s regulatory impact analysis found that this new plan will reduce CO2 emissions from their current level, and that complying with this new rule could cost half-a-billion dollars less than the CPP’s compliance cost. “This new rule would improve our environment and save taxpayers’ money,” Attorney General Wilson said.