{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://hartzler.house.gov/press-release/hartzler-public-statement-epa%E2%80%99s-proposed-rule-source-performance-standards-new-power", "Hartzler Public Statement - EPA\u2019s Proposed Rule on Source Performance Standards for New Power Plants", "2013-11-05", "2013", "2013-11", "Republican", "House", "MO", "Vicky Hartzler", "H001053", "hartzler.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "\u201cMissouri is a unique and diverse state, and the economy has been built on hard work, proper use of the state\u2019s natural resources, and affordable, reliable energy.\u00a0 The EPA\u2019s proposed rule on source performance standards for new power plants has raised serious concerns among ratepayers, utilities, and small businesses in my district.\u00a0 My main concern with these proposed regulations remains focused on Missouri\u2019s need to produce affordable and reliable electricity.\u00a0\n\u201cAs we continue on the path toward economic recovery, I am very concerned these regulations, would create a de facto ban on building any new coal fired power plants in the U.S. by requiring the use of Carbon Capture and Storage technology.\u00a0 This technology has not been commercially proven in any state, and the small pilot projects that have taken place are in states and parts of the world with drastically different geological formations than the state of Missouri. It is crucial for the EPA to set realistic expectations and standards that can be met by all states in a way that is not economically damaging to local ratepayers and small businesses.\u00a0\u00a0\n\u201cMissouri utilities and electric cooperatives have remained committed to working with the EPA, local stakeholders, and university researchers to decrease sulfur and other air pollutant emissions, diversify renewable energy sources, and invest heavily in energy efficiency upgrades on the supply and demand side of the business.\u00a0 For example, the Missouri Electric Cooperatives has recently brought online 600 megawatts of wind energy and will add another 150 megawatts by the end of 2014; Ameren UE has been working to earn a DOE grant with various stakeholders to develop commercially viable Small Modular Nuclear Reactors by 2025; and the University of Missouri recently installed the largest 100 percent biomass-fired boiler on a university campus in the U.S., which reduced the University\u2019s fossil fuel use by more than 25 percent.\n\u201cWhile Missouri utilities continue to diversify their energy portfolios to include more renewable sources like wind, solar, and nuclear, the state continues to derive over 80 percent of its energy from coal.\u00a0 States will need regulatory flexibility to meet these standards, and utilities should be credited for recent steps taken to decrease emissions and restructure their energy.\n\u201cI would encourage the EPA to work with utilities across the U.S. to provide standards based on realistic expectations and provide states with the maximum amount of flexibility when meeting the final standards. \u00a0Flexibility should include but not be limited to exempting biomass emissions from the standard, allowing a utility to average their requirement emissions across their entire fleet, and ensuring the technologies required are proven and commercially viable.\u00a0\n\u201cIn conclusion, it is vitally important that these new regulations are reasonable and implemented over a workable time period so impacts of ratepayers and small businesses will be minimal.\u00a0 It is small businesses in my district that create the jobs that are lifting us from this recession and the middle class Americans struggling to make ends meet that will feel the greatest impact from any onerous and over prescriptive regulation.\u00a0 With the fragile recovery, Missouri cannot afford additional costly regulation.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://hartzler.house.gov/press-release/hartzler-public-statement-epa%E2%80%99s-proposed-rule-source-performance-standards-new-power"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6491960268467665, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}