Cord Byrd: “on July 16, 1997, President Clinton directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review its nitrogen oxide…”

“on July 16, 1997, President Clinton directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review its nitrogen oxide (NO<INF>X</INF>) transport standards under the Clean Air Act. Subsequently, on November 7, 1997, the EPA announced a proposed ozone transport rule to reduce the regional transport of ground-level ozone across a 22-state region of the eastern United States, and the agency is now poised to announce its final ruling on NO<INF>X</INF> emissions and ozone transport. The 22 states that have been targeted by this rule are some of the nation's most heavily populated, and include a large concentration of major industries, utilities, and automobiles. Based on past experience, it is not surprising that the Environmental Protection Agency has, once again, decided to pursue a heavy-handed and arbitrary approach toward its regulation of NO<INF>X</INF> emissions. While the EPA argues that its recommendations reflect the cooperative work of 37 states through the Ozone Transport Assessment Group (OTAG) process, OTAG actually recommended a range of options to be considered on a state-by-state basis. The EPA, in its proposed rule, has chosen the most extreme of those recommendations--an 85% reduction in NO<INF>X</INF> emissions within the 22-state region.”