WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee said on Tuesday it planned a June 20 hearing on the Trump administration’s proposal to freeze fuel efficiency standards at 2020 levels through 2026.

FILE PHOTO: The U.S. Capitol building reflected in water at sunrise on the day of the U.S. midterm election in Washington, U.S., November 6, 2018. REUTERS/Jim Bourg

Two subcommittees will jointly hold the hearing, committee Chairman Frank Pallone and other Democrats said in a statement, saying they “look forward to questioning both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.”

Heidi King, the deputy NHTSA administrator, and Mary Nichols, the head of the California Air Resources Board, are both likely to testify at the hearing, officials said.

Last week, 17 major automakers including General Motors Co, Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp urged the White House to resume talks with California aimed at avoiding a lengthy legal battle over the standards.

Pallone and Representatives Jan Schakowsky and Paul Tonko said in a joint statement that “rolling back our clean car standards threatens American jobs, public health, the climate and consumers.

“The automobile industry doesn’t even support the Trump Administration’s proposal – no one does, except the oil companies that stand to profit from Americans spending more at the pump filling up less efficient cars,” the statement added.

Automakers last week backed a compromise on vehicle emissions, warning that the lack of a deal could lead to “an extended period of litigation and instability.”

In a letter to California Governor Gavin Newsom also signed by Daimler AG, Ford Motor Co and Hyundai Motor Corp, the 17 car companies urged a compromise “midway” between the Obama era standards that require annual decreases of about 5% in emissions and the Trump administration’s proposal.

In a separate letter to President Donald Trump last week, they urged “both the federal government and California to resume discussions and to remain open to regulatory adjustments.”

The White House said on Thursday that California had “failed to put forward a productive alternative, and we are moving forward to finalize a rule with the goal of promoting safer, cleaner, and more affordable vehicles.”

Eighteen states, including California, have vowed to sue the administration if it finalizes the freeze. In August 2018, the administration called for stripping California of the right to impose stricter emissions rules or to require a rising number of zero-emissions vehicles.

The Trump plan would increase U.S. oil consumption by about 500,000 barrels a day by the 2030s but reduce automakers’ regulatory costs by more than $300 billion, the agencies said. </s> WASHINGTON, June 11 (Reuters) - The House Energy and Commerce Committee said on Tuesday it plans a June 20 hearing on the Trump administration’s proposal to freeze fuel efficiency standards at 2020 levels through 2026.

Two subcommittees will jointly hold the hearing, committee chairman Frank Pallone and other Democrats said in a statement, saying they “look forward to questioning both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency.” (Reporting by David Shepardson Editing by Phil Berlowitz) </s> WASHINGTON, June 11 (Reuters) - The House Energy and Commerce Committee said on Tuesday it plans a June 20 hearing on the Trump administration's proposal to freeze fuel efficiency standards at 2020 levels through 2026.

Two subcommittees will jointly hold the hearing, committee chairman Frank Pallone and other Democrats said in a statement, saying they "look forward to questioning both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency."

Last week, 17 major automakers including General Motors Co , Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp urged the White House to resume talks with California aimed at avoiding a lengthy legal battle over the standards. (Reporting by David Shepardson Editing by Phil Berlowitz) </s> President Donald Trump emerged from the G-20 summit in Germany isolated from every other major economy on climate change, but the White House nonetheless scored small victories during the meeting.

After a tense round of negotiations, G-20 nations on Saturday reached a compromise on climate change, the last remaining issue of contention at the summit. Every country except the United States declared that the Paris climate change agreement is “irreversible” and must be implemented “swiftly.” The U.S., on the other hand, declared its intention to pull out of the 2015 deal, which has won the backing of nearly 200 nations.

Several countries, including France, had objected to the United States' insistence on mentioning fossil fuels in the G-20's joint communique, leading to an eleventh-hour round of talks.

In the end, the United States appeared to win that fight, keeping the reference to fossil fuels, while pairing it with a call to use renewable energy.

"The United States of America states it will endeavor to work closely with other countries to help them access and use fossil fuels more cleanly and efficiently and help deploy renewable and other clean energy sources, given the importance of energy access and security in their nationally-determined contributions,” the joint communique says.

Administration officials hailed the language as a victory, with one telling POLITICO the U.S. “scored big.”

“It’s nearly unprecedented to have text in a document like this one referring to what only one country believes. In that respect, it’s a vacuous victory for the U.S., since it only confirms what everyone already knew they believe,” said former State Department climate change adviser Andrew Light. “If anything, it only indicates the knots this administration will tie itself into in order to try to simultaneously appear to be appeasing their base and not alienating the rest of the world.”

The United States also used the G-20 communique to underscore its intention to withdraw from the Paris climate deal and scrap former President Barack Obama’s domestic emissions reduction plan (known in United Nations parlance as a “nationally determined contribution), while stressing that it hopes to continuing working with other countries.

“The United States of America announced it will immediately cease the implementation of its current nationally-determined contribution and affirms its strong commitment to an approach that lowers emissions while supporting economic growth and improving energy security needs,” the text says.

Foreign diplomats hope this language leaves room for the United States to remain in or rejoin the Paris deal if Trump writes a new domestic climate plan that reflects his priorities.

The 19 other G-20 nations all underscored their support for the Paris agreement, and endorsed a broad German-backed climate and energy plan, which includes a detailed roadmap for reducing emissions.

The unity is a coup for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who sought to minimize disagreements among the rest of the G-20 amid U.S. opposition to the Paris agreement. There had been some speculation that Saudi Arabia and Turkey might object to certain portions of the climate language, but Merkel and other leaders worked to ensure they were on board.

Still, that language was weakened slightly in the final negotiations, as part of what one diplomat called a “tit-for-tat” with the United States. A previous draft version of the text said countries “agree” that the Paris deal is “irreversible.” The final version uses less firm language, a seemingly minor tweak that caught the attention of some U.S. officials and foreign diplomats.

“The Leaders of the other G20 members state that the Paris Agreement is irreversible,” the communique says.

G-20 countries similarly insisted that the United States use the word “state” to characterize its position, worrying that stronger language could imply broader agreement among other nations.

The U.S. has been an outsider on climate change at international talks since Trump took office.

At the May G-7 meeting in Italy, the U.S. declined to join other countries in backing the Paris deal, saying it was in the process of reviewing its policies. After Trump’s June announcement that he intends to withdraw from the Paris agreement, the U.S. position was relegated to a footnote in a joint statement released after a G-7 environment ministers meeting in Germany last month. </s> SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – Three Democratic governors said Thursday they won’t let the United States back away from a commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, despite President Donald Trump decision to withdraw from an international pact.

“This is an insane move by this president,” California Gov. Jerry Brown said, blasting the decision as “deviant behavior from the highest office in the land.”

Brown joined Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington state and Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York to form the U.S. Climate Alliance to uphold the Paris climate agreement, a pact involving nearly 200 nations aimed at slowing the warming of the planet.

The three states already belong to an emissions reduction pact of states and cities worldwide, but Thursday’s action marked a direct stand against the Trump administration and a formal commitment to upholding the targets of the Paris agreement.

Connecticut Gov. Dan Malloy and Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe also expressed interest in joining the new pact.

“We governors are going to step into this cockpit and fly the plane,” Inslee told reporters. “The president wants to ground it – we’re going to fly it.”

Trump formally announced his decision to leave the historic international agreement after months of teasing the action. He criticized the pact as a job-killer that put the United States as an unfair advantage.

It may be years, however, before the country can formally exit the deal, but Trump said he’ll immediately halt implementation. He said he would consider re-entry if the U.S. could get a better deal.

Republican politicians and representatives of the coal industry cheered Trump’s action.

“President Trump’s courageous decision to exit the Paris Accord recognizes that the United States is not legally bound to an Obama-era agreement that set unrealistic emissions targets at the expense of billions of American taxpayer dollars without the approval of Congress,” said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who joined nine other states in urging Trump to leave the agreement.

Under the Paris agreement, negotiated during former President Barack Obama’s tenure, the United States voluntarily committed to reducing polluting emissions by 1.6 billion tons by 2025.

The Democratic governors’ new pact commits to that same goal, which requires a 26 to 28 percent reduction in emissions from 2005 levels.

Specific targets haven’t been set for each state. California, New York and Washington together account for about 10 percent of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions, Brown’s office said.

California is already working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2030, and Brown has cast himself as Trump’s chief foil on climate policy. It’s unclear when discussions between the three governors began, but they announced their new pact within an hour of Trump’s announcement.

Brown is about to begin a trip to China to discuss emissions-reduction policies with other leaders and has promised to fill the void left by the Trump administration. At home, Brown is battling to reauthorize a cap-and-trade program that expires in 2020, a key piece of his political legacy. He’s said California’s economy is proof that combating climate change isn’t the economic deadweight Trump suggests.

Washington state is also moving ahead with capping carbon emissions and requiring power plants and oil refineries to reduce emissions over time. In New York, Cuomo announced he would use executive orders to ensure his state continues to abide by the Paris agreement.

West Virginia Coal Association Senior Vice President Chris Hamilton said U.S. withdrawal from the Paris accord would build confidence in U.S. mining and industry even if it wouldn’t make major changes on the ground. Trump promised during his campaign to bring back coal mining jobs.

“I think it slows down this rush toward punitive measures against the United States industrial base and mining industry,” Hamilton said.

Associated Press writers David Klepper in Albany, New York, Rachel La Corte in Olympia, Washington, and Michael Virtanen in Morgantown, West Virginia, contributed. </s> Our boy Andrew Wheeler has wasted no time during his takeover at the Environmental Protection Agency. Scott Pruitt may be out, but that doesn’t mean propping up the fossil fuel industry is. First on Acting Administrator Wheeler’s checklist? Easing restrictions on coal ash.

Coal ash is what’s left behind after a power plant is done burning the coal itself. In 2015, former President Barack Obama put out a rule to help regulate it. A final version of the Disposal of Coal Combustion Residuals From Electric Utilities rule, aka the CCR rule, took effect in 2016, but once President Donald Trump took office, coal ash companies began petitioning the EPA to do away with it. Now, they’ve scored $28-31 million in savings through a revision that removes key elements of the rule that helped protect communities.

Per the Washington Post, Wheeler’s EPA has revised the Obama rule to extend the life of some existing coal ash ponds (where coal ash is mixed with water and stored) from April 2019 to October 2020, give states more power over deciding whether a facility is meeting the federal standard, and suspend some requirements on groundwater monitoring.

“Our actions mark a significant departure from the one-size-fits-all policies of the past and save tens of millions of dollars in regulatory costs,” said Wheeler, in a press release announcing the revision on Wednesday.

It’s true the Obama-era rule cost industry more money. But that’s because it put basic safeguards in place to keep people safe from their waste. Coal ash can contain heavy metals like lead, arsenic, mercury, and boron—all of which can leach into the groundwater if not stored properly after removed from a power plant. If people inhale or drink this stuff, they can suffer from cancer, heart damage, and kidney disease (among other things). It’s no secret that communities of color and low-income families bear a disproportionate burden from this.

After analyzing industry data on coal ash earlier this year, environmental groups found groundwater contamination throughout Oklahoma—the same state Pruitt approved just last month to regulate its own coal ash. And Oklahoma’s not alone: In Puerto Rico, a study in March uncovered that a major coal ash dump was contaminating groundwater in Guayama. The rollback of this rule will impact people there, too.

“[This rollback] is a menace to public health,” said Ruth Santiago, an attorney with the Environmental Dialogue Committee in Puerto Rico who lives in the area, to Earther. “It’s certainly a huge concern for communities like Guayama and Salinas who have all this exposure to the coal combustion, this waste.”

Wheeler’s sign-off on the revision shouldn’t come as a surprise: The man is a former coal lobbyist, after all. This is just his first move, which the EPA has dubbed “Phase One, Part One.” What’ll Phase Two hold?

Santiago back in Puerto Rico isn’t sure, but she and her colleagues are working diligently to prepare a response. People’s lives are depending on it. </s> President Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday evening that he will announce his decision on whether the United States should leave the 2016 Paris Accord Thursday at the White House.

Trump will announce his decision on the Paris Agreement in the next few days.

Trump, who has called global warming a “hoax”, promised during his presidential campaign to pull the US out of the deal.

What’s not quite clear yet is whether Trump intends to pull out of the Paris agreement itself, or the entire treaty underlining all global climate change negotiations, called the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

More on this as it develops.

China says it will work with the European Union to uphold the worldwide agreement on climate change even if the US pulls out.

Last week, more than 20 Republican senators, led by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, sent a letter to Trump asking him to leave the Paris Climate Agreement.

Hundreds of United States companies, including Nike, Starbucks and Mars, also signed a joint letter warning Mr Trump a withdrawal would threaten “American prosperity”.

She’s criticizing what she says are “destructive and short-sighted” decisions by the Trump administration. The deal relies heavily on reductions in emissions by big polluter nations, and the United States is the world’s second-biggest carbon dioxide emitter behind China. While a shift of focus back onto fossil fuels will undoubtedly provide jobs growth in the short-term, whether the president believes in climate change or not, the future of energy is in renewables.

Some northern European countries are criticizing the USA for its expected withdrawal from the Paris climate accords.

In Denmark, climate minister Lars Christian Lilleholt said that “if true, this is a really, really bad signal from the United States”.

The European Union and China spell out their continued commitment to the deal in a draft joint statement, obtained by CNN, which is slated to be published Friday regardless of what Trump announces.

Musk indicated that he had been trying to persuade Trump to remain part of the climate agreement.

Under Obama, Washington had pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 26-28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. The organization’s main Twitter page quoted Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as saying, “Climate change is undeniable”.

A frustrated German Chancellor Angela Merkel later warned that Europe “must take its fate into its own hands”, citing the differences with Washington on climate change as evidence of their divergent paths. Tesla’s Elon Musk threatened to quit White House advisory councils if the president pulls out. His agency was responsible for numerous multilateral issues, including climate change and ozone depletion. The U.S., he said, is “well positioned to compete” with the agreement in place and staying in means “a seat at the negotiating table to ensure a level playing field”.

A spokesman for the American Petroleum Industry, which represents US oil and gas companies, said it had no position on the Paris agreement, but pointed out recent declines in USA carbon emissions to near 30-year lows – a trend driven by increased natural gas use replacing coal. </s> President Donald Trump says the reviews are in: He puts on a "tremendous" meeting.

President Donald Trump says the reviews are in: He puts on a "tremendous" meeting.

President Donald Trump's biggest lender won't have to give up part of its business as punishment from a criminal conviction thanks to a temporary reprieve from the administration.

President Donald Trump's biggest lender won't have to give up part of its business as punishment from a criminal conviction thanks to a temporary reprieve from the administration.

New York City officials are citing climate change as their motivation to join a growing number of entities divesting themselves of financial interest in fossil fuels.

New York City officials are citing climate change as their motivation to join a growing number of entities divesting themselves of financial interest in fossil fuels.

President Donald Trump is welcoming the prime minister of Norway to the White House.

President Donald Trump is welcoming the prime minister of Norway to the White House.

(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File). FILE - In this Aug. 20, 2007 file photo, Robert "Bob" Murray, founder and chairman of Cleveland-based Murray Energy Corp., arrives at a news conference at the entrance to the Crandall Canyon Mine, in northwest of Huntingto...

WASHINGTON (AP) - In the early days of the Trump administration, the head of one of America's largest coal companies sent a four-page "action plan" to the White House calling for rollbacks of Obama-era environmental and mine safety regulations.

"We have listed our suggested actions in order of priority," Robert "Bob" Murray, the chairman and CEO of Ohio-based Murray Energy, wrote in his March 1 letter addressed to Vice President Mike Pence. "We are available to assist you and your administration in any way that you request."

A review of the memo by The Associated Press shows Murray, an early campaign supporter of President Donald Trump and major GOP political donor, has gotten about half the items on his wish list. They include pulling the United States out of the Paris climate accords and revoking the Clean Power Plan, former President Obama's signature effort to limit planet-warming emissions from coal-fired power plants.

Murray has spoken widely about his policy priorities in the intervening months, but a copy of his four-page plan became public this week after it was obtained by Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and first reported by The New York Times.

Under Trump, the Mine Safety and Health Administration has also moved to reconsider rules meant to protect miners from breathing coal and rock dust - the primary cause of black lung - and diesel exhaust, which can cause cancer.

Other Murray priorities, such as eliminating federal tax credits for wind turbines and solar panels, have floundered, however. The renewable energy tax breaks were largely retained in the final Republican-drafted tax plan signed by Trump last month.

And despite Trump's campaign pledges to put scores of coal back to work by ending what he and Murray have derided as Obama's "War on Coal," the administration's regulatory rollback has thus far had modest economic benefits.

Only about 500 coal mining jobs were added in Trump's first year, bringing the total to about 50,900 nationally, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. The nation's utilities have also continued to shutter coal-fired plants in favor of those burning natural gas made cheaper and more abundant by new drilling technologies.

In an interview with AP on Wednesday, Murray said Trump and his appointees have overall done a great job helping his industry, rating them "nearly a 10" in the first year. He specifically credited Environmental Protection Administrator Scott Pruitt and Energy Secretary Rick Perry with being "stars."

Murray said he had private meetings with both Pruitt and Perry last year to discuss his policy goals.

"President Trump has done a wonderful job in addressing what is needed to improve the cost of electricity in America and to improve the reliability, security and resilience of the electric power grid," Murray said. "I give him very high marks."

Spokespeople for Pruitt and Perry did not immediately respond to questions Wednesday about Murray's action plan.

Murray said he is still hopeful that Pruitt will follow through on the second-highest priority item on his 2017 action plan, revoking EPA's 2009 finding that emitting greenhouse gases in the atmosphere threatens public health and welfare. The finding provided the legal underpinnings for Obama's efforts to regulate carbon emissions as pollutants under the Clean Air Act.

Murray also expressed disappointment that Trump appointees on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission voted Monday to reject a proposal by Perry to make coal and nuclear power plants eligible for billions of dollars in government subsidies.

AP reported last year that Murray had asked the Trump administration to issue an emergency order protecting coal-fired power plants from closing. Murray warned that failure to act could cause thousands of coal miners to be laid off and force his largest customer, Ohio-based FirstEnergy Solutions, into bankruptcy.

Perry ultimately rejected Murray's request, but later asked FERC to boost coal and nuclear plants by subsidizing their continued operation.

The Republican-controlled commission voted unanimously to reject Perry's claim that further retirements of coal-fired power plants pose a threat to reliability of the nation's electric grid.

"There's no question about it, there are folks in the administration that have their own agenda, rather than President Trump's," Murray said. "There are some staffers who have gone contrary to the wishes of our president."

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Monday ruled in favour of a U.S. House of Representatives committee seeking President Donald Trump’s financial records from his accounting firm, dealing an early setback to the Trump administration in its legal battle with Congress.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington also denied a request by Trump to stay his decision pending an appeal.

Last Tuesday Mehta heard oral arguments on whether Mazars LLP must comply with a House of Representatives Oversight Committee subpoena.

Mehta said in Monday’s ruling that the committee “has shown that it is not engaged in a pure fishing expedition for the President’s financial records” and that the Mazars documents might assist Congress in passing laws and performing other core functions.

“It is simply not fathomable that a Constitution that grants Congress the power to remove a President for reasons including criminal behaviour would deny Congress the power to investigate him for unlawful conduct - past or present - even without formally opening an impeachment inquiry,” Mehta said.

Mehta said Mazars has seven days to comply with the subpoena.

It was the first time a federal court had waded into the tussle about how far Congress can go in probing Trump and his business affairs.

Trump told reporters the decision was “crazy” and that it would be appealed.

“It’s totally the wrong decision by obviously an Obama-appointed judge,” Trump said.

Trump is refusing to cooperate with a series of investigations on issues ranging from his tax returns and policy decisions to his Washington hotel and his children’s security clearances.

The standoff deepened on Monday when Trump told former White House counsel Don McGahn to defy a subpoena to testify about Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation before a different congressional committee.

Trump’s lawyers have argued that Congress is on a quest to “turn up something that Democrats can use as a political tool against the president now and in the 2020 election.”

The House Oversight Committee claims sweeping investigative power and says it needs Trump’s financial records to examine whether he has conflicts of interest or broke the law by not disentangling himself from his business holdings, as previous presidents did.

Lawyers for Trump and the Trump Organization, his company, last month filed a lawsuit to block the committee’s subpoena, saying it exceeded Congress’ constitutional limits.

Mehta was appointed in 2014 by Democratic former President Barack Obama, who was often investigated by Republicans in Congress during his two terms in office.

Mazars has avoided taking sides in the dispute and said it will “comply with all legal obligations.”

The ruling was “a resounding victory for the rule of law,” Elijah Cummings, the House Oversight Committee chairman, said in a statement.

“Congress must have access to the information we need to do our job effectively and efficiently, and we urge the President to stop engaging in this unprecedented cover-up and start complying with the law,” Cummings said.

A judge in Manhattan will hear arguments on May 22 in a similar lawsuit Trump filed to block subpoenas issued to Deutsche Bank AG and Capital One Financial Corp.

Mehta’s ruling “will probably have considerable weight in similar factual contexts where the House is seeking other records,” said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond.
A committee of the US House of Representatives announces that it will hold a hearing next Thursday (June 20) to examine fuel efficiency standards, as the Trump administration presses for a rollback of an Obama-era schedule of 5% reductions in emissions per year.