"Love Letters to Darrell Issa"

"Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), the new chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, has asked a slew of companies and industry groups for feedback on the regulations they think need to be changed. Two major lobbies, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) and the American Petroleum Institute (API), wasted no time in sending over their wish lists.

Both groups have staunchly opposed a number of new regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency, particularly those intended to combat climate change. The NAM list calls for weakening a number of environmental, health, and labor standards that they believe are currently "harmful" to manufacturers. Via John Walke, that includes rules on mercury, arsenic, lead, and other carcinogens, and smog standards as well as greenhouse gas limits.

Greenhouse gas regulations from the EPA are, of course, not popular among many industry types. But the smog rules are also pretty important—and have significant public health consequences. The EPA has proposed tougher limits on ozone pollution, also known as smog, but has delayed a final decision on those rules. (The agency pushed the release date back again last month.) The American Lung Association estimates that up to 186 million people in the United States currently breath unhealthy levels of smog under the weaker standard. But EPA has faced backlash from groups like NAM."

Kate Sheppard reports for Mother Jones January 13, 2011.

SEE ALSO:

"Issa's Regulatory Rehash (Mother Jones)

"G.O.P. Asks Businesses Which Rules to Rewrite" (New York Times)

"Issa Will Make Regulatory Hit Lists Public" (Fine Print/OMB Watch)

"CREW: Issa Should Post Regulation Letters" (CREW)

"Oversight Head To Release Business Requests for Regulation Rollbacks" (The Hill)