By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
Critics of President Obama’s EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) have alleged that the agency may have been politicized by the administration. On Thursday, August 13, US Representative Gary Palmer (R-Hoover) suggested that EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy might not have been entirely forthcoming recently, with a US House of Representatives Committee.
Congressman Palmer wrote in a statement, “Appearing before the Science, Space, and Technology Committee, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy appears to have made false and misleading statements regarding the slate of new rules and regulations being pursued by the EPA. These statements underscore my concerns about the lengths that the EPA is willing to go to in order to justify regulations not supported by science, but that will have an enormously negative impact on individuals, families, and the economy as a whole.”
Rep. Palmer and 12 other members of the committee sent a letter to Administrator McCarthy challenging her claims.
According to Rep. Palmer, in her appearance before the Committee, McCarthy claimed that the figures in the final “Waters of the United States” rule promulgated by the EPA were based on sound science. The Congressman claim that her claim is contradicted by internal memos from the Army Corps of Engineers.
The conservative critics of McCarthy’s EPA also charge that her claim that states are not penalized for ozone emissions that are out of their control, such as background levels of ozone, saying that this would not present a compliance issue for states contradicts earlier EPA statements to the contrary.
The Congress members also claim that the EPA has never taken action to withhold Department of Transportation funds from states and localities for failure to comply with EPA regulations. Palmer and company say that evidence shows these sanctions have been imposed as many as 13 times.
Congressman Glenn Grotham (R-Wisconsin) went even farther and called for McCarthy to resign. “EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy’s leadership has been nothing but toxic, not only for businesses, but also for our nations natural resources. The mismanagement at the EPA, including a porn scandal where an employee was caught watching two to six hours of porn a day and no one was fired and calls for reckless ozone and coal regulations by Gina McCarthy has gone on for too long. That is why I’m calling for her resignation. It’s time for Gina McCarthy to step down and the EPA to clean up their act.”
Congressman Gary Palmer represents Alabama’s Sixth Congressional District. Palmer has been a vocal critic of many recent EPA policies, citing the cost and of inadequate oversight from Congress.
