Obama's 2nd Term EPA Will Raise Gas Prices and Cripple Growth-- By Design

That's according to this Forbes article by Larry Bell (h/t to Pat at And So it Goes in Shreveport...):

"A new report released by the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works Minority Committee enumerates a slew of planned EPA regulations that have been delayed or punted on until after the election that will destroy millions of American jobs and cause energy prices to skyrocket even more.

"Titled 'A Look Ahead to EPA Regulations for 2013: Numerous Obama EPA Rules Placed on Hold Until After the Election Spell Doom For Jobs and Economic Growth', it lists and describes new rules concocted over the past year ranging from additional restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions, tougher water guidelines and tightening of the ozone standard. Taken together, they will further drive up pump prices, impose construction bans on local communities, and cripple oil, natural gas and coal production.

"As the Washington Post notes, the report puts a spotlight back on the Obama EPA which has earned a 'reputation for Abuse', serving as a stark reminder that President Obama has presided over a green team administration that works every day to 'crucify' oil and gas companies and make sure that '…if you want to build a coal plant you got a big problem.'

[...]

"Premised upon farcically flawed climate alarm conclusions pitched by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which were even disavowed by EPA’s own internal review of the matter, the agency is proposing the first source-specific emissions standards for new power plants which are so strict they will virtually eliminate coal as a fuel option for future electric power generation. While EPA has punted on standards for existing power plants as well as refineries — standards which will further drive up electricity and gasoline prices, once these regulations are in place, we can expect the agency to proceed under auspices of its Clean Air Act (CAA) to issue regulations, industry by industry, until virtually every aspect of the American economy is constrained by strict bureaucratic permitting requirements. These rules are projected to cost more than $300 to $400 billion a year, and will significantly raise the price of gas at the pump and energy in the home.

[...]

"As reported in the New York Times last year, President Obama admitted that the “regulatory burdens and regulatory uncertainty” of tightening the ozone standard would harm jobs and the economy … but he still pointed to the fact that it will be reconsidered in 2013. EPA itself estimated that this would cost $90 billion a year, while other studies have projected that the rule could cost upwards of a trillion dollars and destroy 7.4 million jobs.

"By EPA’s own projections, it could put 650 additional counties into the category of 'non-attainment,' which is the equivalent of posting a 'closed for business' sign on communities. Affected counties will suffer from severe EPA-imposed restrictions on job creation and business expansion, including large numbers of plant closures.

[...]

"EPA’s proposed new guidance document for waters covered by the Clean Water Act (CWA), proposed in April 2011, reinterprets recent Supreme Court decisions to allow EPA to expand federal control over virtually every body of water in the United States, no matter how small. EPA’s own analysis of the document estimated that up to 17% of current non-jurisdictional determinations would be considered jurisdictional using the new guidance.

"Further, the guidance applies to the entire CWA, which will result in additional regulatory responsibilities for states. This dramatic expansion has received tremendous push-back from the regulated community, states, and municipalities who do not want to have extensive new federal authorities and the costs associated with additional CWA compliance pushed through in guidance. As Inside EPA reported in the spring of 2012, the guidance looks to be delayed until after the election. This guidance, much like greenhouse gas regulations, failed to pass as legislation when Democrats enjoyed overwhelming majorities in the House and the Senate.

[...]

"EPA’s Boiler MACT (Maximum Achievable Control Technology) standards are so strict that not even the best-performing sources can meet them, so many companies will have no choice but to shut their doors and ship manufacturing jobs overseas. The rule has been projected to reduce U.S. GDP by as much as 1.2 billion dollars and destroy nearly 800,000 jobs.

"Because of bipartisan Congressional opposition to the standards, the agency is now reconsidering certain aspects of the rule. In what can only be seen as another politically- calculated move, the new rule is now being held by the White House, presumably until after the election. Not only is this creating uncertainty among the regulated community, it is also fueling speculation that very few changes have been made to the rule, and that the White House would prefer that it not be made public until after the election.

[...]

"The American Council for Capital Formation estimates that the new EPA regulations already in place will result in 476,000 to 1,400,000 lost jobs by the end of 2014. Management Information Services, Inc. foresees that up to 2.5 million jobs will be sacrificed, annual household income could decrease by $1,200, and gasoline and residential electricity prices may increase 50% by 2030. The Heritage Foundation projects that the greenhouse gas regulations will cost nearly $7 trillion (2008 dollars) in economic output by 2029.

"According to the annual 'Regulator’s Budget' compiled last year by George Washington University and Washington University in St. Louis, the employment of federal government regulators has climbed 13% since Obama took office, while private sector jobs shrank by 5.6%. In fact, if the federal government’s regulatory operations were a business, their $54 billion budget would make them one of the 50 the largest in the country… bigger than McDonald’s, Ford, Disney and Boeing combined. It’s high time we voters issued pink slips to those responsible for mismanaging that bloated enterprise. [bolds mine]"

There's more. These are just some of the highlights. Be sure to click on the link to the Forbes article above and read the whole thing.

This shouldn't be a surprise. Obama told the San Francisco Chronicle that he would do much of this. Obama's quote: "Under my plan of a cap and trade system electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket. Businesses would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that cost onto consumers."

If you think unemployment is high now, if you think the cost of electricity and goods (including food and gas) are high now, just wait until Obama's next term. Let's make doubly sure to vote this guy and his green agenda out. We simply can't take four more years of this guy's "fundamental transformation" of our country.