Top Republicans and the AZ Chamber of Commerce Are Suing the EPA Over New Pollution Rules
Authors:
AZ Mirror and Gloria Rebecca Gomez
Date:
25 March 2024
Category:
Air
Keyword:
Energy,
Judiciary
Language:
English
Click here for original posting.
Republican lawmakers are challenging a federal rule aimed at reducing smokestack and diesel emissions, arguing that its new requirements are too stringent to implement and will be financially devastating for Arizona.
Senate President Warren Petersen and House Speaker Ben Toma joined the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry in a federal lawsuit filed against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday that challenges the agency’s decision to cut the annual air pollution standard by 25%.
Petersen, a Republican from Gilbert, blasted the rule as “tyrannical” and claimed that it would have negative consequences for Arizona businesses.
“This rule will create unnecessary hardships for job creators and hardworking Arizonans,” he said in an emailed statement accompanying the lawsuit. “It will detrimentally impact our power grid and create even more red tape for both small and large businesses. We have no choice but to ask the courts to provide relief from this tyrannical, arbitrary, and illegal move by the EPA.”