Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer vowed Thursday to try and overturn a move by the Trump administration rolling back regulations of methane, a potent greenhouse gas contributing to climate change.
Schumer said Democrats would seek to use the Congressional Review Act to repeal a proposed rule issued by the Environmental Protection Agency Thursday that would eliminate the direct federal regulation of methane emissions from oil and natural gas operations. The act allows lawmakers to pass a resolution overturning new federal rules with a majority vote, avoiding the 60-vote threshold of the filibuster.
“This illogical and devastating rule to weaken one of the most important regulations to address greenhouse gas emissions would be a dagger in the heart of efforts to preserve the planet,” Schumer said in a statement. “The Trump administration’s proposed rollback of these regulations — which oil and gas companies actually support — would be another, horrifying blow to our already-imperiled environment. Senate Democrats will fight to repeal these new regulations through our Congressional Review Act authority.”
A Congressional Review Act resolution must be introduced within 60 legislative days of a federal agency finalizing a regulation in the Federal Register.
Democrats cannot yet use the tool to reverse the methane regulation because it is only a proposal. It is expected to be finalized before 2020 after going through a public comment period. Democrats would need the support of four Republican senators to repeal the methane rule, given they hold 47 seats, including independents who caucus with Democrats.
The Trump administration’s proposed rule would reverse regulations imposed by the Obama administration in 2016 requiring oil and natural gas companies to install technologies to inspect and repair wells, pipelines, and storage facilities that leak methane.
Methane, the main component of natural gas, is more potent than carbon dioxide, although its emissions don’t last as long in the atmosphere.
