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, My name is Sara Chieffo and let me first say thank you for this opportunity to speak in strong support of the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed Clean Power Plan, which sets the first national limits on carbon pollution from existing power plants. I am here as a mom, an asthma sufferer, and as the Legislative Director at the League of Conservation Voters. I commend President Obama's leadership in addressing the challenge of our time — climate change — and strongly support the comprehensive Climate Action Plan he unveiled in June 2013. A core pillar of that plan is limiting the pollution driving climate change from the nation's power plants. The science is clear. Climate change is here and human actions are the main cause. Across the country, people are seeing the impacts right outside their windows —the devastation wrought 

### by Superstorm Sandy, the drought gripping California, or the wildfires and subsequent floods that ravaged Colorado this past summer. Our nation is already footing the bill for climate change. In 2013, there were seven separate weather and climate disasters whose price tags exceeded $1 billion. Taxpayers are stuck picking up the vast majority of these costs. Doctors, nurses, scientists and other experts have sounded the alarm. If we don't act, carbon pollution will lead to catastrophic impacts. Climate change is a clear threat to our health. 

### Climate change's rising temperatures will make smog pollution worse, triggering asthma attacks and even permanently damaging children's developing lungs. Fossil fuel-fired power plants are the single largest source of carbon pollution in the United 

### States — accounting for roughly 40% of annual global warming emissions. Until now, these polluters have been free to dump unlimited amounts of carbon pollution into our air. The EPA's proposed standards would finally change that. These state-by-state pollution reduction guidelines put states in the driver's seat when it comes to deciding what pollution reduction measures work best for them. The four building blocks the EPA has outlined are based on programs that have a proven track record of success in many states. Limiting carbon pollution is widely supported — including by an overwhelming four out of five 

### young people. This isn't surprising given the generation with the most at stake. In fact, reducing carbon pollution from the nation's largest polluters is so common sense that most people assume limits are already in place. They know we limit the amount of inercury, arsenic and lead that power plants can spew into the air and the public expects we do the same for the pollution causing climate change.

1920 L Street N W, Suite 800 • Washington, DC 20036 • 202-785-8683 • Fax: 202-835-0491 Icv@Icv.org • www.lcv.org

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# 7 l LEAGUE O° CONSERVATION VOTERS

This proposed standard will protect public health, spur innovation in clean technologies, create new jobs, save consumers on their energy bills, and start us down the path of stopping dangerous climate disruption. It will help ensure the current market trends toward a cleaner, safer, and more modern power sector continue. This standard builds on the successful actions that the EPA, in partnership with the Department of Transportation has already taken to reduce carbon pollution from the nation's fleet of cars and trucks. LCV has already gathered over 150,000 comments in support of the Clean Power Plan. Our members are part of the record-breaking millions of concerned citizens across the country that have already voiced their support for the EPA setting limits on both new and existing power plants' carbon pollution. We commend the EPA for this proposal and encourage the agency to issue the strongest final standard possible, including increasing the assumptions about what reductions are achievable through investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy. I feel lucky to get up every day fighting for a safer planet and cleaner air. Thank you to EPA for 

### being a partner in that fight. Looking into my year-old daughter's eyes is my daily reminder of what is at stake and why we must act now to stop dangerous climate disruption. Thank you.



### Contactinformation: Sara Chieffo Legislative Director 

### League of Conservation Voters sara chieffo@lcv.orp 

### 202-785-8683

1920 L Street NW, Suite 800 • Washington, DC 20036 • 202-785-8683 • Fax: 202-835-0491 Icv@Icv.org • www.lcv.org