-9999

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mrs. CAPITO. Mr. President, I rise today in support of the nomination of Lee M. Zeldin to serve as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. I have confidence that Congressman Zeldin's experience as a veteran of the War on Terror, as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve, and as an elected official on both the State and Federal level has prepared him to aptly serve as the EPA's leader.

As a Member of the House of Representatives, Congressman Zeldin championed environmental policies that helped his Long Island district. During his testimony in front of the Environment and Public Works Committee, Congressman Zeldin proficiently demonstrated his understanding of what it will take to lead the Agency and the scope and importance of the authorities he will be required to faithfully implement. Congressman Zeldin is committed to adhering to the laws Congress passed that direct the EPA to protect our air, land, and water. He recognizes that the EPA's work must take into consideration the Agency's impacts on our constituents' pocketbooks and Main Street's success in addition to their health and welfare.

Congressman Zeldin understands that the Agency must act on issues that the American people support, providing reliable, affordable, and clean American energy while also assisting communities that suffer from legacy pollution. This will provide a welcome change from the last 4 years of the Biden EPA. As a result of the previous administration's ideologically driven regulatory overreach, families paid more to fill up their car to drop their kids off at school and get to work, paid more to heat their homes, and paid more at the grocery store due to increased energy costs.

American energy producers were hit with regulation after regulation, intended to shut down reliable and affordable electric generation, strangling the very innovation and economic growth that led to decreasing emissions and pollutants, and America's energy dominance during President Trump's first term in office. I saw these impacts directly in communities across my home State of West Virginia. The Biden EPA set unscientific and unachievable regulatory requirements that would bankrupt rural communities. The process of approving new, safer chemicals was ground to a halt, and environmental cleanup programs were layered with bureaucracy and redtape.

Thankfully in November, the American people spoke and rejected the previous administration's activist environmental agenda that promoted scarcity, inflation, and stagnation. With the confirmation of Congressman Zeldin, we have the opportunity to get the EPA back to meeting its core mission, protecting human health and the environment, and get Washington, DC, out of the way.

In turn, this will empower States and communities to permit and fund the projects we need to protect our environment and grow our economy. The United States is facing a critical moment where the decisions made today will set the direction of our country for years to come. Our Nation's electric reliability experts are telling policymakers that the lights are blinking red, as major parts of the country are at risk of electricity shortages.

Energy demand is sharply increasing as we strive to bolster America's energy security, bring manufacturing back to our shores, and compete with China to win the artificial intelligence race. This all requires more energy, of all types, rather than less. With Congressman Zeldin's leadership, the actions that EPA will take can set America up to thrive in an era with a cleaner environment, energy abundance, lower costs, and economic prosperity. This path will be a win-win for the American people.

It is time to get to work, and that starts with confirming Congressman Zeldin. I urge my colleagues to support Lee Zeldin to serve as the EPA Administrator.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source