2015 Coal News

NOVEMBER 2015

Nov. 15, 2015

House Committee Hearings

EMISSIONS PLAN (Smith, R., Ginter, T.) To require the Environmental Protection Agency to submit a state plan governing carbon dioxide emissions to the General Assembly prior to submitting it to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and to declare an emergency. READ MORE »

OCTOBER 2015
October 28, 2015	The answer to our energy future? An all-of-the-above solution Today there is an abundance of energy across our nation. From traditional to renewable energy resources, our production capability has never been greater. READ MORE »
October 23, 2015	Two dozen states sue Obama over coal plant emissions rule A coalition of 24 states and a coal mining company filed lawsuits Friday to challenge the most significant piece of President Obama’s environmental agenda, his signature climate change rule for power plants. READ MORE »
October 20, 2015	Why Coal is Just Like the Airline Industry OK. Maybe not just like. But JPMorgan’s John Bridges and Anant Inani argue that they see parallels between coal miners–we assume they’re talking about Peabody Energy (BTU), Arch Coal (ACI) and the like–and the recovery in the airline industry post-the Great Recession. READ MORE »
October 19, 2015	Coal Trumps Solar in India A failed solar experiment in the village of Dharnai has underscored the challenges of going solar in India. READ MORE »
October 15, 2015	Obama sets aside $14.5 million for battered coal communities, industry conflicted The Obama administration has set aside about $14.5 million to assist those communities most affected by the coal industry's sustained downturn, providing 36 grants for 12 states and tribal nations. READ MORE »
October 13, 2015	Who Wants to Buy a Coal Mine? Tom Clarke received a cold reception when he first approached Patriot Coal Corp. earlier this year. READ MORE »
October 09, 2015	Appeals Court Blocks Obama's Attempt To Expand EPA Reach Over Wetlands The Obama administration’s effort to accomplish through regulation what it can’t do through legislation suffered another setback today as a federal appeals court slapped a nationwide injunction on the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Water Rule, which would have placed hundreds of millions of acres of additional land under federal wetlands regulations. READ MORE »
	Commission lets states decide Ohio River mercury tests States along the Ohio River will decide how and where companies test to determine how much mercury they release into the waterway, according to a decision by the multistate commission overseeing the river’s health. READ MORE »

AUGUST 2015
August 28, 2015	Request to Suspend Implementation of the Clean Power Plan Governor Kasich’s letter to President Obama requesting to suspend the implementation of the Clean Power Plan READ MORE »
August 24, 2015	California green failure a warning for states facing Clean Power Plan In the eyes of the Obama administration, California is the gold standard for state energy policy. READ MORE »
August 21, 2015	The EPA wants to trade your job for 0.01 degrees Celsius For more than a year, energy and utilities experts have been warning that the EPA's proposed "Clean Power Plan" (CPP) will increase electricity prices and jeopardize the reliability of America's electric grid. READ MORE »
August 20, 2015	Coal supporters see hope for industry resurgence with Republican in White House A resurgence of the U.S. coal market after a sustained downturn over the last five years will depend on a Republican victory in next year's presidential election, according to Steve Forbes, the chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media. READ MORE »
August 19, 2015	Head of EPA Admits Climate Regulations Will Hit Low-Income Minority Families Hardest The chief environmental regulator in the United States had some blunt words of reality regarding the administration’s climate change regulations. READ MORE »
August 14, 2015	Fifteen US states seek to block Obama's clean power plan Attorneys general for 15 other states issued a statement supporting the EPA rules to cut emissions and saying they would oppose legal efforts to block them READ MORE »
August 12, 2015	Republicans skirted issues in presidential debate, Obama's energy plan leaves grid vulnerable \| Letters Marshall McLuhan must be smiling. Political and social media pundits who rated the debate performance of Republican presidential candidates have given new life to the phrase "the medium is the message." READ MORE »
August 09, 2015	President’s carbon plan bad for Ohio, bad for America Last week, the Obama Administration and its radical EPA decided to fundamentally change our energy grid, putting all Americans at risk. READ MORE »
August 07, 2015	The Clean Power Plan Will Collide With The Incredibly Weird Physics Of The Electric Grid There’s a lot that’s already been written about the Clean Power Plan (CPP): Google it and you find 71 million hits (at least as I write this). A lot more will be written yet. READ MORE »
August 05, 2015	Ohio will sue EPA over Obama's Clean Power Plan The Obama administration's plan to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide that power companies make generating electricity is just plain unconstitutional, say the attorneys general of West Virginia, Ohio and a growing number of other states. READ MORE »
August 04, 2015	New Climate Change Plan Gives Ohio Until 2030 To Cut Emissions The White House has come out with a sweeping strategy meant to mitigate the effects of climate change. READ MORE »
	How Would Carbon Reduction Plan Affect Ohio? The White House has come out with a sweeping strategy to limit climate change. The so-called Clean Power Plan requires every state to play a role in cutting carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants. So how would the plan affect Ohio? READ MORE »
	Foes gird to fight Obama’s carbon-cutting plan Opponents of the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan prepared Monday for all-out war against the carbon-cutting regulation, blasting the measure publicly while accelerating behind-the-scenes efforts to stop its implementation. READ MORE »
August 03, 2015	Statement from the Ohio Coal Association Columbus - The following statement may be attributed to Christian Palich, President of the Ohio Coal Association, regarding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s final “Clean Power Plan” rule released today: READ MORE »

JULY 2015
July 27, 2015	Coal Industry, Environmental Group At Odds Over Impact Of Permitting Changes The recently passed budget bill includes provisions designed to streamline the issuance of coal mining permits, but environmentalists say it could allow operators to effectively mine on unwilling landowners' property. READ MORE »
	Ohio Coal Association statement on today’s OSM stream buffer zone regulation announcement “Today’s stream buffer zone regulation announced by OSM is just the latest in radical overreach that is designed to destroy coal communities. It’s unfortunate the unelected bureaucrats at OSM have ignored the concerns of state regulators and Congress in order to promote a continued radical anti-coal agenda. OSM also has ignored NEPA requirements in order to develop the rule in secret, which is why it should be no surprise that 9 out of 10 States have withdrawn as cooperating agencies. We urge Congress to continue to hold OSM accountable for these job killing regulations.” Christian R. Palich President, Ohio Coal Association
July 06, 2015	Center for American Progress Helped Craft EPA Press Strategy A prominent left-wing group helped formulate Environmental Protection Agency talking points designed to sell a controversial regulatory scheme to skeptical journalists, internal emails show. READ MORE »
July 05, 2015	Obama‘s Renewable-Energy Fantasy On June 30, one day after the Supreme Court struck down the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulation of mercury emissions from power plants, President Obama committed the United States to the goal of generating 20% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. READ MORE »
July 02, 2015	SCOTUS Mercury Ruling is a Wake Up Call for EPA The Supreme Court ruled on June 29, 2015, that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must consider costs before determining to regulate mercury and other toxic emissions from fossil fuel-fired power plants. READ MORE »
July 01, 2015	Coal company sues over Obama water rule Coal giant Murray Energy Corp. said Wednesday it is suing the Obama administration over its rule asserting power over small bodies of water. READ MORE »
JUNE 2015
June 30, 2015	A win for the American coal industry The US Supreme Court has ruled that the US Environmental Protection Agency‘s refusal to consider cost of compliance when determining whether to regulate power plant emissions was unreasonable. READ MORE »
	A well-deserved smack down for the EPA President Obama's grand plan to regulate coal out of existence started to come apart Monday. READ MORE »
June 29, 2015	U.S. top court rules against Obama administration over air pollution rule The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled the Obama administration should have considered compliance cost when it decided to limit emissions of mercury and other hazardous air pollutants mainly from coal-fired power plants, a setback for the government that leaves the legal status of the regulation in limbo. READ MORE »
June 26, 2015	Fiorina takes aim at 'terrible' EPA climate rules GOP presidential candidate Carly Fiorina is no fan of President Obama's plan to cut back on emissions from power plants. READ MORE »
June 24, 2015	Coal, industrial representatives tote up the Clean Power Plan costs for Senate panel The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Power Plan, calling for 30% greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions by 2030 for existing power plants, would have huge cost impacts on both residential and industrial power consumers, said witnesses at a June 23 U.S. Senate hearing. READ MORE »
June 23, 2015	Standing up against EPA overreach benefits all Americans As the Environmental Protection Agency plunges headlong into remaking the very fabric of American electricity generation, it is reassuring to know voices of reason continue to challenge the agency’s reckless plans. READ MORE »
June 22, 2015	How Antonin Scalia Could Undo a Key Part of Obama‘s Green Legacy Antonin Scalia could be on the verge of throwing a wrench in President Obama's environmental agenda. READ MORE »
	The EPA's Clean Power Plan: A scheme for rich white elitists One of the few beliefs liberals and conservatives rally around is that government power should not harm the powerless. READ MORE »
June 21, 2015	Coal Miners Sign Class Action Lawsuit Against EPA Laid off coal miners, and some still employed, are compiling signatures for a class-action lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Act. The petition currently has thousands of signatures. READ MORE »
June 18, 2015	Senate panel advances $30B bill that targets EPA rules The Senate Appropriations Committee on Thursday advanced a $30.01 billion spending bill that takes aim at President Obama’s environmental regulations. READ MORE »
June 16, 2015	GOP lawmakers advance tight EPA budgets Congressional Republicans moved to dismantle the Obama administration’s environmental agenda on Tuesday, pushing spending bills through committees that would shrink the EPA and prevent the agency from enacting a range of major rules on issues from climate change to water pollution. READ MORE »
June 15, 2015	Energy agency: Climate plans won‘t prevent temperature increase The greenhouse gas cuts proposed by some of the world’s biggest economies won‘t be enough to stop global temperatures from rising beyond the important 2-degree Celsius threshold, the International Energy Agency said Monday. READ MORE »
June 13, 2015	Obama’s Bipolar Approach To Energy And Climate Change With less than two years to go in office, President Obama has already sealed his fate with regards to his legacy on climate change. READ MORE »
June 12, 2015	EPA Consulted Many to Develop Its Clean Power Plan Regarding Benjamin Zycher’s “The EPA’s ‘Clean Power’ Mess” (op-ed, June 8): The EPA’s Clean Power Plan proposal was informed by unprecedented engagement with states, utilities, stakeholders and the public. READ MORE »
June 10, 2015	Will EPA Regs Collide And Create An Energy Crisis? EPA plans to tighten ozone standards and regulate carbon dioxide emissions could end up causing huge problems for states caught in the crossfire, according to an analysis by the free-market Institute for Energy Research. READ MORE »
June 07, 2015	The EPA’s ‘Clean Power’ Mess The plan will ensure that energy plants operate like cars in stop-and-go traffic, cutting efficiency. READ MORE »
June 05, 2015	Why I’m Not Giving Up On This High-Yield Coal Investment Steve Mauzy: Is there a business sector more despised than coal? Tobacco, possibly, but even that’s debatable. READ MORE »
June 03, 2015	UMWA president: Coal’s largest union to sue EPA over CO2 emission rules The United Mine Workers of America will join many in the coal industry fighting the U.S. EPA’s Clean Power Plan and New Source Performance Standards in federal court. READ MORE »
June 02, 2015	CAMPAIGN 2016: Bush’s speech to coal execs evidence of GOP’s industry courtship A speech by likely Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush to a group of coal company executives yesterday was decidedly a low-key affair. Word only got out because of a leak. READ MORE »
	Coal industry warns of ‘significant economic harm’ as power-plant rules enter final stage The coal industry marked the one-year anniversary of the Obama administration's controversial emission rules with a stark warning of economic harm, as the rules head to the White House for final review. READ MORE »
MAY 2015
May 29, 2015	EPA’s triple threat to the economy This week, the Environmental Protection Agency released one of the strictest water rules ever issued, part of what could be the most expansive regulatory binge in the agency's history. READ MORE »
May 18, 2015	Critics Hear E.P.A.’s Voice in ‘Public Comments’ WASHINGTON — When the Environmental Protection Agency proposed a major new rule intended to protect the nation’s drinking water last year, regulators solicited opinions from the public. READ MORE »
May 17, 2015	Federal Coercion and the EPA’s Clean Power Plan An obscure provision of the Clean Air Act has become the basis for a sweeping effort to fight climate change. But is it constitutional? READ MORE »
MARCH 2015
March 18, 2015	Rep. Bill Johnson Questions Ohio EPA Director on EPA's "Clean Power Plan" Rule
March 17, 2015	EPA ‘burning the Constitution’ with carbon rules, Harvard scholar says As President Obama forges ahead in his fight against climate change, a leading Harvard Law School scholar says a central piece of the president’s strategy is akin to “burning the Constitution” merely to advance an environmental agenda. READ MORE »
March 16, 2015	House to use Tuesday hearing to pan climate rules The House energy committee will get its turn to pick apart the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed rules for existing power plants, following the Senate environment committee that bashed the rules at a hearing last week over the expected costs to states. READ MORE »
	Murray Energy to Acquire Controlling Interest in Foresight Energy Appalachian coal miner Murray Energy Corp. will acquire a controlling interest in Foresight Energy, which mines in the Illinois basin, creating a new sprawling, major American coal company at a time of turmoil for the industry. READ MORE »
March 12, 2015	Don't return to rate-of-return regulation The EPA’s emissions standards for new, modified and existing power plants are expected to be completed next summer. READ MORE »
March 11, 2015	Biden On Coal Regulations: ‘A Lot Of People Are Going To Get Hurt’ Vice President Joe Biden told HBO viewers that federal regulations to move the U.S. away from coal-fired power will hurt a lot of Americans. READ MORE »
March 10, 2015	EPA Rules To Force 85 Coal-Fired Generators To Close By The End Of This Year Energy companies are preparing to shut down nearly 16 gigawatts of power by the end of this year as the deadline for compliance with new federal environmental regulations looms. READ MORE »
	Arkansas joining states challenging EPA on emissions WASHINGTON -- Arkansas has been allowed to intervene in a lawsuit challenging a proposed Environmental Protection Agency rule limiting carbon emissions nationwide, state Attorney General Leslie Rutledge announced Monday. READ MORE »
March 07, 2015	Federal coal plant regulation gets politically combustible Federal utility regulators plan to raise questions later this month that could push the debate over the administration's climate rules to a fever pitch. READ MORE »
March 03, 2015	States should reject Obama mandate for clean-power regulations The Obama administration's so-called "clean power" regulation seeks to shut down more of America's power generation under the guise of protecting the climate. READ MORE »
FEBRUARY 2015
Feb. 28, 2015	Going deep to find more respect for miners As your representative to Congress, I have the honor of visiting many great businesses across Eastern and Southeastern Ohio, both large and small; and, it's important that I listen to job creators who continue fighting an uphill battle in this difficult economy. READ MORE »
Feb. 27, 2015	Coal company says EPA climate rule already hurting industry A major coal company is arguing that the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed climate rule for power plants is already having an effect on its operations. READ MORE »
Feb. 26, 2015	Jim Inhofe mocks global warming ‘hysteria,’ throws snowball on Senate floor Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe reportedly tossed a snowball Thursday on the Senate floor while arguing against “the hysteria on global warming.” READ MORE »
Feb. 24, 2015	EPA, Interior chiefs play defense on Capitol Hill Top Obama administration officials will have to defend their agencies this week in a pair of committee hearings that will set the tone for how the Republican-led Congress plans to handle top White House environmental policies that GOP lawmakers say amount to executive overreach. READ MORE »
	The President's Misplaced Energy Priorities Earlier this month, the White House doubled down on President Barack Obama’s pronouncement that climate change is a bigger threat to Americans than terrorism. READ MORE »
Feb. 17, 2015	The Obama Administration’s Climate Agenda Will Hit Manufacturing Hard: A State-by-State Analysis Building on an earlier study of the economic impact of Obama Administration climate policies, this study breaks down the employment impacts of new regulations by state and congressional district. READ MORE »

2015 Coal News

House Committee Hearings

The answer to our energy future? An all-of-the-above solution

Two dozen states sue Obama over coal plant emissions rule

Why Coal is Just Like the Airline Industry

Coal Trumps Solar in India

Obama sets aside $14.5 million for battered coal communities, industry conflicted

Who Wants to Buy a Coal Mine?

Appeals Court Blocks Obama's Attempt To Expand EPA Reach Over Wetlands

Commission lets states decide Ohio River mercury tests

Request to Suspend Implementation of the Clean Power Plan

California green failure a warning for states facing Clean Power Plan

The EPA wants to trade your job for 0.01 degrees Celsius

Coal supporters see hope for industry resurgence with Republican in White House

Head of EPA Admits Climate Regulations Will Hit Low-Income Minority Families Hardest

Fifteen US states seek to block Obama's clean power plan

Republicans skirted issues in presidential debate, Obama's energy plan leaves grid vulnerable | Letters

President’s carbon plan bad for Ohio, bad for America

The Clean Power Plan Will Collide With The Incredibly Weird Physics Of The Electric Grid

Ohio will sue EPA over Obama's Clean Power Plan

New Climate Change Plan Gives Ohio Until 2030 To Cut Emissions

How Would Carbon Reduction Plan Affect Ohio?

Foes gird to fight Obama’s carbon-cutting plan

Statement from the Ohio Coal Association

Coal Industry, Environmental Group At Odds Over Impact Of Permitting Changes

Ohio Coal Association statement on today’s OSM stream buffer zone regulation announcement

Center for American Progress Helped Craft EPA Press Strategy

Obama‘s Renewable-Energy Fantasy

SCOTUS Mercury Ruling is a Wake Up Call for EPA

Coal company sues over Obama water rule

A win for the American coal industry

A well-deserved smack down for the EPA

U.S. top court rules against Obama administration over air pollution rule

Fiorina takes aim at 'terrible' EPA climate rules

Coal, industrial representatives tote up the Clean Power Plan costs for Senate panel

Standing up against EPA overreach benefits all Americans

How Antonin Scalia Could Undo a Key Part of Obama‘s Green Legacy

The EPA's Clean Power Plan: A scheme for rich white elitists

Coal Miners Sign Class Action Lawsuit Against EPA

Senate panel advances $30B bill that targets EPA rules

GOP lawmakers advance tight EPA budgets

Energy agency: Climate plans won‘t prevent temperature increase

Obama’s Bipolar Approach To Energy And Climate Change

EPA Consulted Many to Develop Its Clean Power Plan

Will EPA Regs Collide And Create An Energy Crisis?

The EPA’s ‘Clean Power’ Mess

Why I’m Not Giving Up On This High-Yield Coal Investment

UMWA president: Coal’s largest union to sue EPA over CO2 emission rules

CAMPAIGN 2016: Bush’s speech to coal execs evidence of GOP’s industry courtship

Coal industry warns of ‘significant economic harm’ as power-plant rules enter final stage

EPA’s triple threat to the economy

Critics Hear E.P.A.’s Voice in ‘Public Comments’

Federal Coercion and the EPA’s Clean Power Plan

Rep. Bill Johnson Questions Ohio EPA Director on EPA's "Clean Power Plan" Rule

EPA ‘burning the Constitution’ with carbon rules, Harvard scholar says

House to use Tuesday hearing to pan climate rules

Murray Energy to Acquire Controlling Interest in Foresight Energy

Don't return to rate-of-return regulation

Biden On Coal Regulations: ‘A Lot Of People Are Going To Get Hurt’

EPA Rules To Force 85 Coal-Fired Generators To Close By The End Of This Year

Arkansas joining states challenging EPA on emissions

Federal coal plant regulation gets politically combustible

States should reject Obama mandate for clean-power regulations

Going deep to find more respect for miners

Coal company says EPA climate rule already hurting industry

Jim Inhofe mocks global warming ‘hysteria,’ throws snowball on Senate floor

EPA, Interior chiefs play defense on Capitol Hill

The President's Misplaced Energy Priorities

The Obama Administration’s Climate Agenda Will Hit Manufacturing Hard: A State-by-State Analysis