McConnell Introduces Bipartisan Measure to Overturn Obama’s Anti-Coal Reg
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor introducing his resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to overturn the “stream buffer rule”:
“For too long, coal communities in states like Kentucky were unfairly targeted by the Obama Administration as part of its ‘War on Coal.’
“We now have the opportunity to start providing relief to coal families whose only crime was working to support their loved ones. Easing the pain of these regulations is a priority I laid out in a letter to President Trump earlier this year. That letter was a continuation of efforts I began several years ago to push back against the previous administration’s assault on coal families.
“I am pleased that the President has already begun taking steps to provide relief from several different regulations imposed by the former administration — regulations that for too long have stifled growth and held our country back — and together we can do more, including right here in Congress through the Congressional Review Act, or CRA, process.
“One of the first regulations we’re working to address is the so-called ‘Stream Buffer Rule,’ a harmful regulation put into place by the Obama Administration at the 11th hour. One analysis estimated that it could threaten one-third of the nation’s coal mining jobs. That’s why so many across coal country have called for relief from this harmful attack.
“We’ve heard individual voices against this regulation, we’ve heard union voices in opposition like the United Mine Workers of America, and we’ve heard from groups like the Kentucky Coal Association who recently wrote to me about its negative impact: ‘The undeniable truth,’ their letter read, ‘is that… [this rule] will have a real impact on the real world. It will cause real harm to real people, who support real families in real communities.’
“This regulation is an attack on coal families. It jeopardizes jobs and transfers power away from states and local governments. Today I’m introducing a bipartisan resolution to overturn it.
“Congress will also continue acting to provide relief from other regulations that attack our economy and our constituents. In fact, the House will act on its own version of this Congressional Review Act resolution and several others this week. I urge our friends to do so quickly so we can pass them here in the Senate and start providing relief to our coal communities, to our national economy, and to our constituents.”
