EPA letter details contacts with White House

[maddezmom]

Source: Detroit News

EPA letter details contacts with White House
David Shepardson / Detroit News Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- The Environmental Protection Agency has turned over documents detailing contacts between the agency and the White House over its decision to deny California and 16 other states the right to set their own stringent emissions standards.

On April 9, the House Oversight Committee subpoenaed documents from the EPA as part of chairman Henry Waxman's investigation to determine if the White House had a role in EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson's decision to deny California and other states a waiver under the Clean Air Act to impose their own standards. The waiver would have forced a 30 percent reduction in tailpipe emissions by 2016.

The EPA sent a letter April 22 to Waxman turning over 16 additional documents and making 18 available for staff review following an agreement that was reached with the White House Counsel's Office, the EPA and Waxman's staff.

"EPA has been responsive of the committee's demands, having provided over 7,000 documents in response," said the April 22 letter from EPA associate administrator Christopher Bliley, which was obtained by The Detroit News and previously not been made public. He said the EPA was "providing or making available for staff review a substantial number of documents reflecting communications between EPA and White House officials."

Some of those documents detail contacts between White House and EPA press officials.



Read more: http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080429/AUTO01/804290464/1001/BIZ