Washington, DC�A coalition of 26 industry associations Wednesday challenged a proposal that the US environmental Protection Agency regulate greenhouse gas emissions from autos.
Last fall, several environmental groups petitioned EPA to assume the regulation.
The business associations argued, "The command-and-control actions proposed by the petition are not authorized by the Congress."
They also said the Clean Air Act does not authorize such a regulatory regime for any industry sector and such actions would be inconsistent with the policies adopted by past and present administrations and the Congress.
The associations said, "For more than a decade, Congress has consistently enacted, with the support and urging of the Clinton administration and the prior Bush administration, several nonregulatory laws and appropriations to collect information and to facilitate international efforts to address the global issues of climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.
"The regulation of greenhouse gas emissions has only recently been considered at the international level. While the US signed the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, the treaty has not been submitted to the Senate for its advice and consent to ratification."
They said, "It would be highly inappropriate for the EPA to even begin to consider a regulatory action that unquestionably would circumvent the Senate's constitutional role in advice and consent to treaties and that would 'impose binding restrictions' on a segment of US business in advance of US ratification of the Kyoto Protocol."
The associations also said the Clean Air Act did not give EPA power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from autos, "particularly because the Congress has carefully safeguarded its legislative prerogatives with respect to greenhouse gas emissions�including related research and a voluntary context for reporting reductions."
The associations opposing the EPA action included the American Petroleum Institute, National Petrochemical & Refiners Association, Petroleum Marketers Association of America, and Interstate Natural Gas Association of America. Other participants were the United States Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers, Global Climate Coalition, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, American Highway Users Alliance, and National Automobile Dealers Association.
