Caprtol: 

Good afternoon everyone my name is Mike Foley; I am a State Representative 

from the neighboring state of Ohio. I live in Cleveland and represent the 120,000 

people of the 14th House District. I would like to thank everyone here for giving 

me an opportunity to speak on the recently proposed Clean Power Plan. The 

wellbeing of the environment has been an issue I have tried to fight for during my 

eight year tenure as a State Representative. As a father of four children who 

mean the world to me, I am constantly wondering and worrying about what the 

condition of the planet will be 20 or 30 years from now. 

We know climate change is occurring and human-made emissions are the largest 

contributing factor. These are facts that 97% of scientist agree on and should not 

be points of contention or debate. I believe that the United States is currently at a 

crossroad; what actions we take now to mitigate our impact on the environment 

will define what happens in our future. 

Currently we can already see the effects of climate change through severe 

weather events and warmer than average temperatures coupled with one of the 

coldest winters in recent memory. Glaciers in the Antarctic have begun to melt 

and scientist says the process is now irreversible. Failure to take action on climate 

change means that storms will become stronger and deadlier. Local ecologies will 

begin to change. Migration patterns of animals will be disrupted. At some point 

if left unabated, it will change migration patterns of people as coastal areas will 

be underwater and storms associated with hurricanes, typhoons, and tornados 

will become more devastating. The signs of a changing world are all around us 

and there is no longer time to wait, we must act immediately. 

While climate change has been occurring for quite some time it is an issue that 

until recently has been kept out of the spotlight. Other issues such as the 

economy, foreign policy, and social justice issues have garnered most of the 

media attention. However, due to highly publicized scientific consensus and 

extreme weather phenomena, climate change has finally become part of the 

mainstream conversation. People are talking about climate change because its 

effects are now impossible to ignore. The Clean Power Plan for the first time 

District: 77 South Hrgh Street 

Columbus, Ohio 43215·6111 

(614) 466·3350, (614) 719·3910 (fax) 

(800) 282·0253 (toll free) 

www. house.state.oh.us 

District14 @oh r.state.o!l.us 

~~~ 

Parts of Cuyahoga County 

3525 Carrmunn Avenue 

Cleveland, OH 44111·2912 

(216) 390·2216 
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allows the environment to take center stage, highlighting the importance of 

protecting our planet and ensuring we have a sustainable and healthy future. 

Climate change must be considered a moral imperative for our country if we are 

to affect any positive change going forward. The Clean Power Plan is a crucial step 

in combating the effects of climate change. By having power plants reduce their 

carbon dioxide emissions by up to 30 percent we are making an important and 

necessary commitment to the environment. The EPA states that power plants are 

the largest emitters of carbon dioxide in the country accounting for 38% of C02 

emissions. The United States is the second largest emitter of C02 in the world 

behind China. 

Unfortunately I know first-hand the importance of the proposed rule. This past 

April the Whitehouse released the National Assessment on Climate Change and it 

was found that the Midwest emits 20 percent more greenhouse gases per capita 

than the national average. This is due to the Midwest's reliance on dirty sources 

of energy such as coal. In my home state of Ohio the situation is dire. Ohio is the 

fourth highest emitter of carbon dioxide in the nation and the fifth highest 

emitter of greenhouse gases in the nation. Ohio is one of the states that would 

truly benefit from the enactment of the Clean Power Plan to help stem the tide of 

pollutants that we send into the air. 

Recently, Ohio took an unprecedented and irrational step backward by becoming 

the first state in the country to freeze our renewable energy and energy efficiency 

standards. The renewable energy and energy efficiency standards had gotten us 

on a path to reducing our impact on the environment by keeping millions of tons 

of C02 out of the atmosphere. Now with the future of those standards up in the 

-air, Ohio runs the risk of returning to its polluting past. The Clean Power Plan will 

help to ensure that we are continuing down the path of sustainability even if our 

standards are ultimately lowered or repealed. 

District: 

77 South H1gh Street 

Columbus, Ohio 43215·6111 www.house.state. oh.us 

District14 @ohr.state.oh.us 

Parts of Cuyahoga County 

3525 Carrmunn Avenue 

Cleveland, OH 44111-2912 

(216) 390-2216 

(614) 466-3350, (614) 719-3910 (fax) 

(800) 282-0253 (toll free) ~Jf~-
c;;apitol: 

I know that implementing these new regulations will be a challenge for our 

country but it is a challenge we must be ready to meet. Climate change is a 

problem we must start solving today. We cannot continue to kick the can further 

down the road and keep our heads buried in the sand. Many will have you believe 

that the coal industry cannot afford to have these regulations put in place but 

that is not the case. It is the citizens of the United States that cannot afford having 

millions of tons of C02 pumped into the atmosphere and it is our planet that 

cannot afford to have us remain indifferent. While we cannot solve the climate 

change problem singlehandedly, this is a major start to fulfilling our obligation to 

protect our planets' environmental health. If we don't lead the way then who 

will? If we cannot ask ourselves to act in the best interest of the environment, 

how can we ask other countries to do the same? We pride ourselves on being 

leaders in the world, well lets act like it regarding the most important threat to 

our existence we have ever faced. 

I am proud to state my support for the Clean Power Plan. I am proud of our 

President and the EPA for being forward-thinking and for putting the needs of our 

planet over the greed of big business. I will continue to do whatever I can to 

advocate for our environment and for a planet that is as healthy as can be for my 

four children. I thank you again for letting me speak here today. 

District: 

77 South High Street 

Columbus, Ohio 43215-6111 www.house.state.oh.us 

District14@ohr.state.oh.us 

Parts of Cuyahoga County 

3525 Carrmunn Avenue 

Cleveland, OH 44111-2912 

(216) 390-2216 

(614) 466-3350, (614) 719-3910 (fax) 

(800) 282-0253 (toll free)