WASHINGTON, DC,
Feb. 16, 2011
(Press Release) -
American Forest & Paper Association President and CEO Donna Harman today issued the following statement commenting on the bipartisan letter from 61 freshman Members of Congress to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson urging her to issue a Boiler MACT rule that benefits the environment without harming existing jobs.
"Democrat and Republican officials continue to come together to underscore to EPA that its Boiler MACT rule must be affordable to be achievable. EPA's earlier draft of this rule would have cost billions of dollars to implement and put tens of thousands of jobs at risk. The agency has said they were making changes to better balance environmental benefits with economic impacts, and we are anxious to see whether the rule they soon release will show a fundamentally different direction than the previous rule.
"I commend these 61 freshman Members of Congress for supporting American workers by voicing their concerns about the impending Boiler MACT rule. Their leadership is an important part of the process, and emblematic of what is at stake. "
Background
For a copy of the letter from freshman members of the U.S. House of Representatives, click here . Over the past several months, including today's letter from freshman House members, Boiler MACT has prompted 260 elected officials from the U.S. House, U.S. Senate and Governors to have voiced their concerns to EPA through letters regarding the possible job and economic impact the rule could bring.
The January 27, 2011 letter from thirteen Democrat and Republican freshman U.S. Senators was signed by Sens. Roy Blunt (R-MO), John Boozman (R-AR), Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), Dan Coats (R-IN), John Hoeven (R-ND) Ron Johnson (R-WI), Mark Kirk (R-IL), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Rand Paul (R-KY), Rob Portman (R-OH), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Pat Toomey (R-PA).
On September 24, 2010, forty-one United States Senators - 18 Democrats and 23 Republicans - sent a similar letter to Administrator Jackson. The following eight Senators did not join the bipartisan letter mentioned above, but did sign individual or small group letters: Sens. Russ Feingold (D-WI), Al Franken (D-MN), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Jon Tester (D-MT), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Richard Lugar (R-IN) and Carl Levin (D-MI).
A bipartisan group of 114 members of the U.S. House of Representatives wrote a letter expressing their concerns to Administrator Jackson on August 2, 2010. Reps. David Obey (D-7th WI) and David Wu (D-1st OR) sent separate letters to EPA asking that concerns be addressed.
Twenty-one governors from both parties have written similar letters to Administrator Jackson on the jobs impact of the Boiler MACT regulations over the past several months. Governors who have sent letters are: Haley Barbour (R-MS), Mike Beebe (D-AR), Robert Bentley (R-AL), Terry Branstad (R-IA), Phil Bredesen (D-TN), Tom Corbett (R-PA), John Baldacci (D-ME), Mark Dayton (D-MN), Jim Doyle (D-WI), Christine Gregoire (D-WA), Theodore Kulongowski (D-OR), Linda Lingle (R-HI), John Lynch (D-NH), Robert McDonnell (R-VA), Butch Otter (R-ID), Tim Pawlenty (R-MN), Bev Perdue (D-NC), Sonny Perdue (R-GA), Bob Riley (R-AL), Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA), and Ted Strickland (D-OH).
The American Forest & Paper Association is the national trade association of the forest products industry, representing pulp, paper, packaging and wood products manufacturers, and forest landowners. Our companies make products essential for everyday life from renewable and recyclable resources that sustain the environment. The forest products industry accounts for approximately 5 percent of the total U.S. manufacturing GDP. Industry companies produce about $175 billion in products annually and employ nearly 900,000 men and women, exceeding employment levels in the automotive, chemicals and plastics industries. The industry meets a payroll of approximately $50 billion annually and is among the top 10 manufacturing sector employers in 47 states. Visit AF&PA online at www.afandpa.org.
