As EPA Rolls Back Power Plant Emissions Rules, Whitehouse & Casten Introduce New Legislation to Restore Agency’s Core Mission

Environmental Health Restoration Act would reinstate pre-Trump environmental safeguards and hold polluters accountable

Washington, D.C. - Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, and Representative Sean Casten (D-IL) last week introduced the Environmental Health Restoration Act, legislation to restore and strengthen the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) core mission to protect public health and the environment.

The bill comes just days after the Trump EPA finalized the repeal of the 2024 greenhouse gas standards for coal- and gas-fired power plants and moved to eliminate remaining federal climate pollution requirements for the power sector to bail out Trump's fossil fuel donors.

"The Trump EPA has fully abandoned its decades-long duty to protect Americans' health and safety. Its relentless attacks on science have delivered for big political donors while poisoning our air and water and speeding up the climate crisis," said Whitehouse. "Our bill would jumpstart the process of restoring the science, the scientists, and the original mission guiding the EPA."

"At a time when the Trump Administration is ignoring the climate crisis and undermining Americans' ability to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and enjoy the outdoors, it is more important than ever to restore a commitment to science-based environmental protection at the EPA," said Casten. "The EPA was created to protect public health and our environment. I'm proud to introduce this legislation to refocus the agency on its core mission."

On Wednesday, Whitehouse and Casten joined Protect Our Winters, former EPA scientist Stuart Nissenbaum, League of Conservation Voters, and Olympic athletes for a press conference to speak about their experiences of a worsening climate and the need to reinstate these protections.

"As an Olympian training in the mountains all over the world, I've seen less and less snow, glaciers shrinking at a not-so-glacial pace, and volatile air quality," said Tommy Ford, three-time Olympian and World Cup Champion. "This directly affects our community's health and economy. A stronger, more durable EPA is essential for clean air, clean water and a strong, healthy community."

"Rolling back environmental protections has real consequences for the places and experiences that define the outdoor community," said Ben Gubits, Vice President of Campaigns at Protect Our Winters. "It means dirtier air, greater climate pollution, more threats to public health and accelerating damage to our winters, waterways and public lands. The Environmental Health Restoration Act draws a clear line, the EPA must follow science, enforce the law and put people ahead of polluters. This is a positive vision for the future looking well beyond the Trump years."

The Environmental Health Restoration Act responds to recent deregulatory actions that have weakened or delayed protections governing air pollution, water quality, greenhouse gas emissions, and environmental enforcement. It would reaffirm Congress's intent that the EPA follow independent science and the law, regulate harmful pollution and the polluters who cause it, and protect communities from harm. Specifically, the Environmental Health Restoration Act would:

• Restore key protections for pollution from power plants, vehicles, and oil and gas operations that were in effect on January 19, 2025.
• Require EPA decisions to be grounded in peer-reviewed science and restore independent scientific advisory bodies.
• Rebuild the agency's civil and criminal enforcement capacity and require annual accountability reporting to Congress.
• Prioritize monitoring and enforcement in communities facing disproportionate pollution burdens.
• Require public-health and cumulative-impact analyses for EPA actions affecting air and water quality.
• Preserve states' ability to adopt environmental standards stronger than federal requirements.
• Allow people harmed by the EPA's failure to comply with the law to seek relief in federal court.

Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) cosponsor the legislation in the Senate. The bill is endorsed by Protect Our Winters, League of Conservation Voters, and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Text of the legislation can be found here.