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October 10, 2013 

1'he Honorable Gina McCarthy 

Administrator 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

Ariel Rios t3uilding 

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. 

Washington, D.C. 20460 

Dear Honorable McCarthy: 

Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced eleven upcoming public listening sessions to 

be held "nationwide" to seek public input from stakel7olders about the Clean Air Act and carbon emissions from 

existing power plants. Upon review of the EPA's scliedule, I was disheartened to see the locations of these 

sessions and the short notice provided to stakeholders in the coal industry. 

As you inay know, coal-fired power plants provide 37 percent of electricity in the U.S. Yet, despite the coal 

industry being a major contributor to America's power generation, the EPA officials planning these listening 

sessions apparently do not want to listen to those who work in the coal industry. All of these listening sessions 

will be held in major metropolitan areas—locations far away from the rural surface lands and mountains that 

provide coal for U.S. power plants and employment for thousands of hardworking Americans. In fact, of the ten 

states with the highest percentage of coal-fired electricity, none were scheduled by the EPA for a listening 

session. My own state of Kentucky ranks second in coal-fired electricity where 92 percent of the 

Commonwealth's electricity comes from coal; yet, the Commonwealth is completely omitted from the EPA's list. 

I have also noted that none oi'the listening sessions are scheduled to be held within reasonable driving distance of 

Southern Appalachia, one of the areas most affected by the proposed regulations. For exaniple, Pike County, the 

largest producer of coal in eastern Kentucky, is roughly a seven-hour drive away from the closest listening session 

in Atlanta, Georgia on October 23"d . Coupling this distance with the liigh costs associated with last-minute air 

travel, it appears as though the EPA has intentionally made it virtually impossible to hear from those who live in 

Kentucky coal country. 

Given the concems t have raised in tthis letter, i request the EPA host an additional listening session in Pikeville, 

Kentucky, which is located in the heart ofcoal country. Pikeville is certainly much more representative of those 

who work in the coal industry than San Francisco, which is located in a state where coal has traditionally provided 

less than one percent of the state's eiectric power generation. A Pikeville meeting would bring Inuch needed 

balance to these listening sessions, 

Thank you for considering my request in a timely manner. Should you or yoar staff have any questions or 

coneerns, please contact'rate Bennett in rny office at (202) 224-8945 or at tate bemiett(i^.meconnell.senate.gov. 

Sincerely,

^^^^•^^.r....... 

IT McCONNELL 

UNI'1'ED STA'1'ES SENATOR 

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