Cnongress nf t4e Unitrb .4ttttPs 

wtts4irtgtnn, UT 20515 

The Honorable Gina McCarthy 

Administrator 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. 

Washington, DC 20460

December 6, 2013 

Dear Administrator McCarthy, 

As representatives of the Commonwealth at the state and federal levels, we are writing to request 

that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials visit Kentucky in order to hold public listening 

sessions regarding your agency's plans to issue standards or guidelines to regulate greenhouse gas 

emissions from existing fossil fuel-fired power plants. 

We are aware of your agency's September 30, 2013 announcement, entitled "EPA to Hold Public 

Listening Sessions on Reducing Carbon Pollution from Existing Power Plants," which demonstrates a 

willingness to consider public concerns ahead of the development of these rules. However, we are very 

surprised and disappointed to learn that all of the EPA's 11 announced sessions are to be held 

exclusively in major metropolitan areas. What is worse, not one of these cities is located within any of 

the ten states most reliant on coal-fired electricity generation. 

As the nation's third largest producer of coal, Kentucky has long provided its residents and the 

nation with an affordable and dependable energy source. Coal provides 92 percent of Kentucky's 

electricity generation, and its availability and affordability have far-reaching implications for our 

manufacturing-driven economy, the coal industry, and family budgets — especially as Kentucky 

continues to be burdened by our nation's eleventh highest unemployment rate. 

Kentucky has already lost more than 6,200 coal jobs in just the last two years, reducing the 

state's coal employment to its lowest level since the Commonwealth began keeping statistics in 1927. 

Unfortunately, these job losses are forecast to continue to increase as additional EPA regulations 

targeting coal come online. 

Within its proposed rule for New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) regulating greenhouse 

gas emissions from new electric utilities, the EPA already predicts that no new coal plants will be built 

in the United States in the coming decade due to the regulatory environment. Extending greenhouse gas 

standards to existing utilities will have significant adverse implications for the nation's existing coal 

fleet and the affordability and reliability of electricity nationwide. 

Moreover, it is not clear how this staggering generation capacity — nearly 40 percent of our 

nation's electricity production — will be replaced. Job losses will not be limited to the coal fields and 

supporting industries, but will ripple across the country as higher energy costs stifle the nascent 

manufacturing renaissance in the United States, reducing our economic competitiveness. 

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UNITED STATES SENATOR 

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4TCH McCONNELL 

UNITED STATES SENATOR 

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MEMBER OF CONGRESS 

Given the seriousness of these forecasts, it is crucial that EPA officials visit states like Kentucky 

— particularly their rural mining communities — to hear firsthand our constituents' concerns about the 

effects on employment and their household budgets before moving forward on a proposed rule. 

The EPA has demonstrated a willingness to hear from our constituents on important energy and 

environmental issues before. Last year, during vigorous public debate over EPA's objections to 36 

Kentucky National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits, the EPA had three public 

hearings in the Commonwealth — one in Frankfort and two in Pikeville, in the heart of Appalachian coal 

country. This was an important opportunity for our constituents to meet with federal regulators. 

Considering the far broader impacts associated with planned greenhouse gas regulations for existing 

power plants, we hope that this example of public outreach in our region can be repeated. 

Failure by the EPA to hold listening sessions on greenhouse gas regulations in those states with 

economies most dependent on the coal industry and coal-fired electricity will be perceived as an effort to 

avoid negative public opinion or ignore adverse economic impacts. For the sake of openness and 

transparency in the eyes of our fellow Kentuckians and the American people, we urge you to announce 

plans to visit Kentucky and other states similarly reliant on coal production and coal-fired electricity as 

you seek public comment on regulating carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants. 

Thank you for your attention to this important matter. We look forward to hearing from you. 

Sincerely, 

ED WHITFIEL BRETT GUTHRIE 

MEMBER OF CONGRESS MEMBER OF CONGRESS 

THOMAS MASSIE

MEMBER OF CONGRESS
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SENATOR ROBERT STIVERS

PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE

COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY 

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SENATOR BRANDON SMITH

SENATE MAJORITY WHIP

KENTUCKY STATE SENATE

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SENATOR DAMON THAYER 

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER 

KENTUCKY STATE SENATE 

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REPRESENTATIVE JIM GOOCH

CHAIR, HOUSE NATURAL RESOURCES &

ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE

KENTUCKY HOUSE OF 

REPRESENTATIVES 

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SENATOR JARED CARPENTER

CHAIR, SENATE NATURAL RESOURCES

COMMITTEE

KENTUCKY STATE SENATE