Energy

Lee Zeldin Reportedly Takes Major Shot At Heart Of Dems’ Climate Agenda

(Screenshot/Fox Business)

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin has reportedly recommended that the White House reverse an Obama-era finding that underpins some of the most aggressive EPA emissions regulations on the books, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.

Zeldin reportedly advised the White House to do away with the 2009 “endangerment finding,” the Obama EPA’s conclusion that certain greenhouse gases pose risks to public health, according to the Post, which granted three sources familiar with matter anonymity to speak freely. Doing away with the endangerment finding would be one of the most aggressive actions on climate and energy policy from the White House to date given the finding is central to Biden-era tailpipe and power plant emissions rules, among others, that the Trump administration is likely to try to repeal.

During President Donald Trump’s first term, the EPA considered invalidating the endangerment finding, but it ultimately survived that presidency. Upon returning to the White House, Trump signed a day-one “Unleashing American Energy” executive order instructing Zeldin and any other relevant officials to submit recommendations “on the legality and continuing applicability” of the finding within 30 days to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

An EPA spokesperson confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation that the agency is in compliance with Trump’s executive order, but did not share any particulars about the conclusion of the agency’s endangerment finding review.

“President Trump’s day one Executive Order, ‘Unleashing American Energy,’ gave the EPA Administrator a 30-day deadline to submit joint recommendations to the Director of OMB, in collaboration with the heads of any other relevant agencies, on the legality and continuing applicability of the 2009 Endangerment Finding,” the EPA spokesperson told the DCNF. “EPA is in compliance with this aspect of the President’s Executive Order.”

Many conservatives have advocated for doing away with the endangerment finding since it came into place, often arguing that it has been leveraged to impose onerous regulatory burdens on crucial sectors of the economy. Environmentalists typically contend that the finding’s implications for the government’s ability to crack down on emissions make it an essential policy.