Dan Coats: “this last fall Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy embarked upon a national listening tour to…”

“this last fall Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy embarked upon a national listening tour to gather feedback on possible new energy regulations that could be ordered by the Environmental Protection Agency's regulatory power. Notably absent from her tour across the Nation were the major coal- producing or user States. Now, my State of Indiana was notably absent from that despite our request that she listen to what Hoosiers had to say about their source of energy, what it does for the state's economy, how it helps attract jobs to our State, and how it helps our residents to keep utility bills in line. So we were very disappointed that we were not included in that listening tour. Other States, surprisingly--or maybe not surprisingly-- which are also coal-producing energy States were also bypassed. Apparently, they didn't want to hear from us. I think on Monday we found out exactly why it was done that way, because in the latest installment of the administration's ongoing ``war on coal'' as it is described, Administrator McCarthy announced that the EPA is putting forward new rules on existing fossil fuel powerplants. These new proposed regulations are essentially an energy tax that will damage our national economy as well as the economy of Indiana and hike electric bills for every Hoosier. As the seventh highest coal-producing State in the Nation, Indiana relies on coal-fired electricity to meet well over 80 percent of its energy needs.…”