The White House is delaying implementation of new rules to reduce carbon emissions by power plants.
Missouri Republican Senator Roy Blunt is among a growing number of lawmakers opposed to those rules. The new rules will be released in August.
They require states to develop plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions over the next 15 years to levels about a third below those in 2005.
Blunt is co-sponsoring legislation to let states opt out of the rules and block the EPA from implementing them.
“Power is a whole lot cleaner than it was a decade ago or a decade and a half ago," Blunt said. "We’re now at the point of can we afford the next step in clean power?”
Blunt says implementing costly and questionable technologies will hit ratepayers.
“This rule has the biggest potential impact on poor families," Blunt said. "Families that are most hurt by this rule are families that can barely pay their utility bill now.”
Earlier this month, Blunt joined 28 other Republicans and one coal-state Democrat in co-sponsoring legislation to allow states to opt out of the rule and blocking the EPA’s implementation. The EPA says the rules are necessary due to carbon’s impact on climate change.
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