WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Steve Daines today blasted the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new regulations on wood burning stoves as a direct threat to Montanans’ access to affordable energy.
This afternoon, the EPA rolled out its final regulations on residential wood heaters, pellet stoves and other wood burning stoves. The new regulations are projected to have a $45.7 million annualized compliance cost, which could lead to higher costs or decreased access to stoves for Montana consumers.
“The EPA’s shortsighted regulatory overreach is once again hitting hardworking Montanans in their pocketbooks,” Daines stated. “Thousands of Montanans rely on wood burning stoves for affordable, cost-effective energy – yet once again, the EPA is moving forward with new, costly regulations that could stand in the way of Montanans’ access to new residential wood heaters or burden Montana families with higher costs.”
Last year, Daines sent a letter to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy to express his concerns about the proposed regulations and urge the agency to better address the regulation’s potential impact on Montana families.
The proposed EPA regulations come on the heels of lawsuits filed in October 2013 by seven states and four groups. In its proposed 2014 rule, the EPA points out that litigation likewise contributed to its initial rule on wood-burning stoves in 1988. Daines’ letter to McCarthy came after hearing from Montanans concerned that the regulations could raise costs on new wood-burning stoves and potentially foreshadow additional regulations in the future affecting currently-owned wood burning stoves.
Daines full letter to Administrator McCarthy may be found here.
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