Joe Barton: “What the pending proposal with the other body would do is simply and very narrowly in the States that are part of the…”

“What the pending proposal with the other body would do is simply and very narrowly in the States that are part of the agreement with the EPA on NOx, and there are 17 States, most of them east of the Mississippi, if those States have a State implementation plan approved or in the process of being approved and they can show that one of the reasons they may not be in compliance is because of ozone transport, they can ask for an extension. The EPA has the discretion to grant the extension; but if the EPA does grant the extension, it can only grant it forward to the compliant date where the ozone transport is originating from, if that makes sense. It is purely discretionary on asking for the extension. It is purely discretionary on granting the extension. The extension can only be granted for ozone transport. It is an attempt to codify the Clinton administration's proposal that was put in the Federal Register in 1998.”