www.NFIB.com
For Immediate Release
Contact: Eric Reller
202-314-2073 or [email protected]
NFIB Small
Business Legal Center Files Brief Challenging EPA’s Emission Rule
WASHINGTON, D.C., January 28,
2015 — Karen
Harned, Executive Director of NFIB’s Small Business Legal Center, made the
following statement in response to NFIB’s amicus brief filing in State of Michigan V. United States
Environmental Protection Agency with the U.S. Supreme Court.
“EPA’s own
estimate sets the price tag on these rules at $9.6 billion a year – but that
projection misrepresents the true impact on the American economy because it
ignores indirect costs. The fact is that these rules will significantly drive
up energy prices for small businesses and consumers, and EPA should be required
take those economic impacts into account. Accordingly, NFIB urges the Supreme
Court to defend small business by requiring EPA to evaluate proposed rules in
the context of the associated cost – not in a vacuum. When the EPA introduces a
new rule or regulation, it is imperative that the agency thoroughly consider
the full costs.”
In this case, proposed EPA rules regulating power plants
would impose significant new costs on the plants – and ultimately on the
consumers. NFIB argues that EPA must consider the additional costs in terms of
significantly higher energy costs for businesses and consumers, when estimating
the ultimate cost of the rule.
The cost of energy remains one of the top concerns of
small-business owners, who rely on affordable energy to operate their
businesses successfully. NFIB’s Small Business Problems and
Priorities found nearly 35 percent of respondents cited energy costs as a
“critical” issue to their business.
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The
NFIB Small Business
Legal Center is a 501(c)(3)
organization created to protect the rights of America’s small business owners
by providing advisory material on legal issues and by ensuring that the voice
of small business is heard in the nation’s courts. The National Federation of
Independent Business is the nation’s leading small business association, with
offices in Washington, D.C. and all 50 state capitals
