Pointing to the United States’ $16 trillion debt, the House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Power is looking to stop the Environmental Protection Agency from awarding grants under Section 103 of the Clean Air Act for foreign projects.

The agency has been awarding grants to foreign recipients totaling over $100 million under the said act since 2001, with additional grants to domestic recipients for the purpose of carrying out projects in locations outside the United States, the subcommittee said in a press release.

The subcommittee expressed concern that the spending for projects abroad are already beyond the EPA’s core mission, and is irresponsible given the U.S.’s debt and budget deficits.

“There is nothing in the Clean Air Act directing the E.P.A. to send tax dollars abroad, and the American people would not be pleased to know we are subsidizing foreign projects at a time when millions of Americans are out of work and the national debt just eclipsed $16 trillion,” said Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton.

Rep. Morgan Griffith questioned the prevalence of foreign grants relating to coal, where the agency was funding coal projects abroad at the same time the agency is imposing regulations that are limiting coal mining in the U.S. – resulting to the layoff of over 600 coal miners.

Energy and Power Subcommittee Chairman Ed Whitfield adds that their concern does not impact any other provision of the law, including those invoked for humanitarian aid and emergency assistance. “Foreign aid is another issue that could be discussed at a later date, but those efforts are properly handled by the State Department – not E.P.A.,” he said.

Daniel Simmons, director of regulatory and state affairs at the Institute for Energy Research, said if the E.P.A. wants to improve environmental quality at home and abroad, a more productive approach would be to promote environmental improvements through economic growth.

"E.P.A. funding of foreign environmental programs is a clear sign that the foreign countries are unwilling to fund these programs themselves,” said David Kreutzer, research fellow with the Heritage Foundation. “It should be noted that the cost of these programs is a small fraction of the cost of those necessary for these countries to meet carbon emission targets set out by proponents of global-warming policies.”

In a report from The Hill, an E.P.A. official said the subcommittee’s bill would “cripple” the agency’s ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the agency said only $140 million was spent on such foreign grants since 2001 – most of which were authorized under former President George W. Bush.

“The E.P.A. believes that H.R. 4255 will cripple the agency’s ability through grants to address harmful air pollutants that affect both the global and domestic environment,” said E.P.A. assistant administrator in the Office of Administration and Resource Management Craig Hooks. “Air pollution from overseas sources represents a growing problem for public health globally and here in the United States.” (Nico P. Arboleda)

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