Governor Mary Fallin Issues Order Standing up to EPA Overreach

OKLAHOMA CITY – Governor Mary Fallin today issued an executive order stating that Oklahoma will not file a State Implementation Plan (SIP) with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulating carbon dioxide emissions produced by Oklahoma power plants. The order also requests Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt “take such action as is necessary to enforce the rights of the State of Oklahoma and its citizens from such federal actions as may impact the freedoms of its people.”

In 2013, President Obama directed the EPA to issue sweeping and unprecedented regulations regarding carbon emissions, citing the federal Clean Air Act section 111(d) as his legal authority.  The authority of the EPA to issue such rules has been called into question by attorneys general in a number of states, including Oklahoma.

The EPA’s proposed rules would require states to cut carbon emissions by 30 percent by 2030. The agency is seeking state cooperation in the development of SIPs to comply with these new rules.

Critics fear that the regulations would dramatically increase utility costs for families and businesses, destroy jobs and be completely ineffective in any sort of campaign to reduce global carbon emissions or mitigate global warming.

“President Obama and the EPA are fighting a politically charged war against utility consumers across the country,” said Fallin. “While the environmental benefits of these regulations will be minimal, the economic devastation of these overreaching and unrealistic regulations will be very real. The order I signed today makes it clear the state of Oklahoma has no intention of implementing new regulations that run directly contrary to the interests of our citizens and our state. We will continue to stand up for Oklahoma families and businesses by fighting this overreach and bad policy in court.”