Gingrich calls for replacing the EPA

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R) called for eliminating the Environmental Protection Agency in a speech Tuesday.

Speaking at an ethanol industry conference Tuesday in Iowa, Gingrich called for replacing the EPA with what he called the Environmental Solutions Agency (ESA). The new agency, a summary of Gingrich’s proposal says, will have a “new and improved charter and mission.”

Gingrich’s comments come as Republicans, and some Democrats, have grown increasingly
frustrated by the EPA’s efforts to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. A coalition of Republicans said Tuesday that they will outline a proposal in the coming weeks to permanently block the agency’s climate authority under the Clean Air Act.

The ESA’s new charter would specifically “eliminate job-killing regulatory abuses” and encourage working with industry in developing rules.

“The new ESA will be a successor agency to the EPA, incorporating the statutory responsibilities of the old EPA while making necessary statutory changes that will eliminate the job-killing regulatory abuses and power grabs of the old EPA,” the summary says.

The summary continues: “The new ESA will focus on developing actual solutions to environmental challenges rather than simply trying to litigate them into existence. The ESA will work with industry instead of dictating to industry and incentivize the use of newer technologies instead of punishing current businesses.”