WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) released the following statement regarding the administration’s latest environmental rule – cutting carbon emissions from U.S. power plants:

“The latest proposed rule, crafted by bureaucrats rather than elected lawmakers, would lead to higher energy costs for Kansas families and businesses, destroy jobs, and threaten economic growth. Kansas would be especially impacted because nearly two-thirds of our state’s electricity production comes from coal. Our state’s power providers have made great progress in reducing emissions over the years, but the additional regulations mandated in this rule will result in higher costs without demonstrating much environmental benefit. 

“This rule will make the United States less competitive than other countries that are aggressively growing their economies with the low-cost electricity generated by coal. Washington should focus on commonsense policies to make energy cleaner and more affordable rather than simply mandating it by adding more red tape and harmful regulations. This administration continues to ignore the impact a rule like this has on average Americans, and I believe we should work to put in place environmental policies that can both protect our natural resources and safeguard our economy.”

According to a recent National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) study that measures the impact of a 10 and 25 percent electricity price increase on jobs and gross domestic product (GDP) from 2020 to 2040, there is a devastating relationship between higher electricity prices and job losses. Even a 10 percent increase results in 1.2 million jobs lost in 2021 across the country with nearly 500,000 of those lost jobs in rural communities. 

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