January, 03 2017, 11:00pm EDT
Americans Did Not Vote for Dirty Air and Polluted Water, But Congress Isn't Listening
WASHINGTON
Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives are expected to take up a slurry bills this week aimed at stripping away vital clean air and water protections that safeguard public health. Examples include the Midnight Rules Act and the REINS Act, which are thinly-veiled attempts to give the allies of polluters in Congress an easy pathway to gut existing clean air and water protections and stop important, science-based health protections from being developed.
The Midnight Rules Act would amend the Congressional Review Act to enable Congress to bundle numerous rules completed in the final months of an administration into a single vote for disapproval. Once Congress passes a joint resolution of disapproval on a bundle of rules, an agency may not adopt subsequent similar rules without express authorization by Congress.
The REINS Act would delay or shut down the development of critical new health and safety protections, obstructing actions that Congress has already mandated by law. It will also effectively shut down the oversight system that protects the public's health and safety in favor of inaction that pads polluter profits.
In response, Melinda Pierce, Sierra Club's Legislative Director, released the following statement:
"These dangerous pieces of legislation are one of the most egregious displays of political kowtowing to big polluters industries ever seen - and when considering previous efforts by many House Republicans over the years to kiss the ring of fossil fuel interests, that's really saying something.
"The process of crafting the safeguards that protect our air, water, and families is supposed to be governed by science and technical expertise, but these bills would ensure that it would all be driven by politics. These extreme bills would empower those politicians who spend every waking hour pushing the agenda of the fossil fuel industry to be able to derail any and all protections meant to protect public health and the environment.
"American families did not vote for more childhood asthma attacks or brown drinking water, but these bills would give them just that. Passing these bills will present a clear threat to public health now and into the future, and we'll do everything we can to stop it."
The Sierra Club is the most enduring and influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. We amplify the power of our 3.8 million members and supporters to defend everyone's right to a healthy world.
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Public health experts reacted with alarm Wednesday to reports that former President Donald Trump promised anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. control over federal agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Agriculture should the Republican nominee defeat Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in next week's election.
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"I'm gonna let him go wild on the foods," Trump vowed. "I'm gonna let him go wild on the medicines."
In a video posted Tuesday on social media, Kennedy said that the GOP nominee promised him control of the Health and Human Services Department, Department of Agriculture, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), National Institutes of Health, "and a few others."
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- California: Rose Penelope Yee, Lateefah Simon, Laura Friedman, Rudy Salas, Jimmy Gomez, David Kim, and Stephen Houlahan (U.S. House);
- Illinois: Nikki Budzinski and Lauren Underwood (U.S. House);
- Massachusetts: Leigh Davis and Natalie Higgins (state Legislature);
- Michigan: Elissa Slotkin (U.S. Senate) and Carl Marlinga (U.S. House);
- Nevada: Steven Horsford (U.S. House);
- New York: Adriano Espaillat, John Avlon, Rob Lubin, Grace Meng, Andrea Morse, and John Mannion (U.S. House); and
- Wisconsin: Rebecca Cooke (U.S. House).
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