Energy Scorecard

This week, the Senate is set to vote on the Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution nullifying the Interior Department’s Stream Protection Rule (SPR). We urge Senators to vote YES on the SPR CRA.

The Congressional Review Act allows for Congress to halt certain regulatory actions. Congress can pass a joint resolution of disapproval for a rule within 60 legislative days of publication and prohibit agencies from enacting any substantially similar rules. The Interior Department Stream Protection Rule, finalized in December of 2016, is prime example of costly regulatory excess and is ripe for review under the CRA. According to the American Action Forum, this rule will cost $1.2 billion.

The Interior Department’s Stream Protection Rule is an unnecessary federal regulation. The SPR is largely duplicative—the EPA and Fish and Wildlife Service already administer many of the Interior Department’s new regulatory changes. The Department of Interior’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement estimates that the SPR would lead to additional annual compliance costs of $52 million. According to some estimates, the SPR could put over 280,000 jobs at risk, including up to 78,000 in the coal mining industry. This regulation would have the largest impact on the people of West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania—states that have already endured years of costly regulations from the Obama administration’s war on affordable and reliable energy.

The Stream Protection Rule is an unnecessary regulation that will destroy jobs and make energy more expensive for American families. Senators should vote YES on the CRA resolution to repeal the Interior Department’s Stream Protection Rule.