The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Tuesday it will “reconsider” air-quality regulations as Texas grapples with what state leaders have called a diesel price “disaster.”
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin laid out the move in a letter to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, R. The letter responded to concerns from Lone Star State officials that rules put in place under the Biden and Obama administrations are causing “significant economic harm.”
“Texas should not be unfairly punished with burdensome requirements,” Zeldin said in a press release about the letter.
“While EPA cannot prejudge the outcomes of these reconsiderations, the agency is committed to working with Texas to make sure this is done right,” he added.
The EPA’s review follows Abbott’s declaration of a statewide disaster over diesel prices on Monday. The declaration allowed the governor to lift other restrictions on commercial transportation.
Abbott expanded the use of dyed diesel on Texas roads. Dyed diesel is untaxed off-road fuel that is typically banned on public roadways.
The governor also suspended Texas Low Emission Diesel rules to the federal government limit.
“Record prices put both industries at risk and raise costs for every Texas family,” Abbott said in a press release.
The numbers show just how steep the climb has been. Diesel now costs nearly $6.40 per gallon on average nationwide, according to AAA.
A month ago, the fuel cost roughly 84 cents less. A year ago, it was about $2.76 cheaper.
According to the EPA’s announcement, the first policy on the chopping block for review is the nonattainment classification stemming from the 2015 Ozone designations. That classification authorized stricter emission control strategies in parts of Texas.
The agency will also reconsider the Biden-era EPA’s disapproval of Texas’s efforts to comply with federal ozone quality standards under the Clean Air Act, the press release said.
“This would ensure that manufacturers and residents in Texas are not penalized for pollution originating beyond their borders and control, allowing the region to continue growing and developing while maintaining clean air,” the press release stated.
The EPA’s move puts the Trump administration’s environmental agency squarely on the side of Texas officials who argue that the older regulations have weighed on the state’s economy.
Soaring diesel prices are also drawing attention on Capitol Hill.
Many lawmakers remain focused on the high prices as the Senate weighs a proposal to embargo diesel exports in an effort to boost supply and bring down prices at home.
The plan has the backing of Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, along with other farm-state Republicans.
Meanwhile, the White House last week denied a report that it was planning a 90-day ban on diesel exports.
For now, the EPA has not committed to any specific outcome. Zeldin stressed that the agency cannot prejudge the results of its reconsiderations, but pledged to work alongside Texas to get the process right.
With prices at the pump climbing sharply over the past year, the pressure on officials in Austin and Washington to deliver relief shows little sign of letting up.
