Leader Schumer & Senator Cardin Announce Senate Democrats Will Force Senate Floor Vote Next Week To Repeal Trump Administration’s New Rule That Significantly Weakens Important Carbon Emissions Standards For Power Plants And Exacerbates Climate Crisis

Under The Congressional Review Act, Senate Democrats Can Force A Majority-Threshold Vote Next Week On Senate Floor On Resolution To Repeal EPA’s So-Called “Affordable Clean Energy” Rule, The Trump Admin’s  Latest Attempt To Weaken Critical Efforts To Meaningfully Confront Climate Crisis 

Next Week’s Vote Will Be First In Series Of Roll Call Votes Democrats Will Force In Coming Weeks To End Leader McConnell’s Legislative Graveyard For Bills To Help Improve Americans Lives

Senate Democrats: Trump Admin’s Dirty Power Scam Rule Exacerbates Climate Crisis And Must Be Reversed

Washington, D.C. – Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), today announced that Senate Democrats will use a rare tool to force a vote on the Senate floor next week on a resolution to repeal the Trump administration’s new rule that significantly weakened important carbon emissions standards for power plants. Under the Congressional Review Act, Senate Democrats can force a majority-threshold vote on a resolution to reverse the Trump EPA’s so-called “Affordable Clean Energy Rule”, which would exacerbate the climate crisis.

Next week’s vote will be the first in a series of roll call votes Senate Democrats plan to force on the Senate floor in the month of October, highlighting how Majority Leader McConnell who – long before the House impeachment inquiry – has turned the upper chamber into a legislative graveyard for priorities of the American people. Senate Democrats will soon also force votes in the Senate on a resolution to save pre-existing condition protections by reversing the Trump administration’s rule pushing junk health care plans and a resolution to repeal the IRS rule that prohibits states and local governments from protecting residents from “double taxation” of their local charitable contributions and State and Local Taxes (SALT) under the Trump tax bill.

The Trump administration’s Dirty Power Scam rule, if left in place, would make fighting the climate crisis harder by extending the life of the dirtiest coal plants rather than transition to cleaner sources of energy. By rolling back regulations on carbon pollution, this Trump administration rule ignores the scientific consensus around the climate crisis and instead lets polluters off the hook.  The CRA resolution proposed by Democrats would stop the Trump administration from moving forward with the Dirty Power Scam and would hold polluters accountable and create clean energy jobs. 

“For months, Senator McConnell and Senate Republicans have shunned vital proposals to improve American’s lives, including those to address the climate crisis and gun violence epidemic, save protections for people with pre-existing conditions, secure our elections, get big special interest money out of politics and more,” said Leader Schumer. “Senate Democrats will not sit around and wait for Senator McConnell to finally wake up and take action, so next week we will force a vote to repeal the EPA’s dangerous rule that weakens critical standards to reduce emissions from power plants that significantly contribute to the climate crisis. The Trump administration’s Dirty Power Scam comes at a time when Americans are demanding we take bold action to confront the climate crisis and it must be reversed.”

“The EPA has a congressionally mandated duty to protect the human health and the environment. The EPA has abdicated its responsibility in promulgating this deeply flawed rule and the Senate will abdicate its responsibility if it fails to repeal the ACE rule,” said Senator Cardin. “The ACE rule presents a major step backward for the United States’ clean energy future, putting downwind states like Maryland at greater risk of pollution generated elsewhere. We can and must do better to protect our constituents, human health, and the environment.”

Disapproval resolutions under the Congressional Review Act allow Congress to review and overturn rules implemented by the executive branch. Once a major rule is finalized, the Congressional Review Act provides Congress 60 legislative days to review and, if they so choose, vote to overturn it. Unlike other legislation on the Senate floor, a disapproval resolution under the Congressional Review Act only needs a simple majority to pass and can be placed on the Senate calendar and scheduled for a vote with 30 members’ signatures.

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