The New York Times > Washington > Change to the Clean Air Act Is Built Into New Energy Bill:

“WASHINGTON, April 15 – Deep in the energy bill that was approved by a House committee this week, under a section titled ‘Miscellaneous,’ is a brief provision that could have major consequences for communities struggling to clean up their dirty air.

If it becomes law, it would make one of the most significant changes to the Clean Air Act in 15 years, allowing communities whose air pollution comes from hundreds of miles away to delay meeting national air quality standards until their offending neighbors clean up their own air.”

I love symbols. Symbolism. Figurative representations of the literal. Metaphors. Perhaps it is the writer in me. Perhaps it is the reader. Regardless of its origins, this single clause buried in a piece of legislation set my metaphor-detecting nerves buzzing. After reading the article (which was written with obvious bias against the legislation), I found myself smirking at the situation. Let me give a little re-count, as I see it:

  1. Your Community has pollution problems. Most likely, you have industry of some sort which is causing the pollution problems. You do not want to hamper industry because those needless regulations cause layoffs which end up with more people taking welfare which ends up burdening more people . . . .

  2. Last month, the Clean Air Interstate Rule was passed. It set new power-plant emissions for three major pollutants for the eastern half of the United States, AND it will allow the Environmental Protection Agency to enforce it–including Nitrous Oxide, which absolutely everyone on the planet (except the scientists employed by the Bush Administration) knows to cause Ozone and the Green House Effect. Your community is now concerned.

  3. Representative Joe L. Barton, Republican of Texas, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee puts on his cape and tights, and using his super-human invulnerability, flexing his position of power, and under cover of darkness, he adds his little clause into the New Energy Bill under the ‘Miscellaneous’ section. It is the same clause that he tried inserting last time around–that was foiled by the Joker, the Riddler, or perhaps even Cat Woman. This time, it sticks.

  4. The legislation passes in the house, and is on its way to becoming a law. This specially crafted clause allows Communities, like yours, to DEFER your need to comply with the pollution laws until the communities that are UPWIND are in compliance with the pollution laws. In one quick swoop, the EPAs new enforcement tools have been rendered inoperable.

  5. Your Community is relieved, your Republican Super-heroes have once again used GOVERNMENT to intervene on behalf of business, and your community has less people on Welfare (at least the last time you checked).

Why are we Legislating Exceptions for Big Business?

This clause is not intended to help communities. It is the inappropriate use of Government to intervene on behalf of corporations–of big business. It is an attempt to undermine accountability to the laws of the United States. When I was a small child, I learned about accountability, also known as consequences. If you put your hand on the burner, you get burned. If you steal a cookie from the jar, you get in trouble. As an adult, the same concept applies. If you do not pay your taxes, you get fined or go to jail. If you break a law, you go to jail.

The small businesses of our country must comply with regulations. If you wanted to start a small Photography Lab, you would have to install the special filters and heavy-metal collectors to ensure that you were not leaving chemicals into the environment. If you were a small garage, you would have to account for all of your waste oil and antifreeze–most likely, you would have to contract with an approved recycling company. In many cases, small businesses cannot leave the lids of their dumpsters open because of the pollutants they may release. And, while our small businesses are meeting the codes and regulations, Representative Joe L. Barton and other politicians are legislating exceptions for big businesses. If you provide a bunch of jobs for our community, I will work on your behalf to lessen the rules you have to follow.

This clause is unacceptable. Perhaps, Representative Joe L. Barton could add a clause to something else. He could amend “By the People, For the People.” His new version could read, “By the People, For the Corporation.”