As part of the more than year-long investigation into the Obama Administration’s rewrite of a 2008 coal regulation, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) today sent a final request letter to the Obama Administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and threatened a subpoena for information and documents regarding EPA’s involvement in the rewrite of the coal regulation that could cost thousands of jobs. The Committee originally sought this information in a February 3, 2012 letter, along with requests to the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ); and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). The Administration’s sweeping new rewrites could cost thousands of American jobs and decrease American energy production. All three agencies have been involved in the rewrite and have thus far failed to cooperate with the Committee’s investigation and document requests. Similar letters were sent to CEQ and OMB.

Click here to read the letter to the EPA.

“To date, considerable patience has been demonstrated in seeking EPA’s compliance with this request. However, the agency’s actions have been consistently underwhelming and after three months of delays and excuses, it is time for EPA to fully respond by providing all requested documents and communications,” wrote Chairman Hastings. “As stated at the outset of this letter, despite the considerable patience and willingness to work with EPA that has been demonstrated since February, should EPA again decide to substantively ignore this document request and not produce the materials in a timely and cooperative manner, it will be appropriate and, apparently necessary, to move to compel production of the documents by issuance of a subpoena.”

Click here to read the letter to CEQ.

Click here to read the letter to OMB.

On March 28, 2012 the House Natural Resources Committee voted to give Chairman Hastings authority to issue subpoenas related to the investigation into the Department of the Interior’s rewrite of the 2008 Stream Buffer Zone Rule.

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