60 Plus Association’s Jim Martin: “EPA out to kill more jobs and skyrocket energy prices.”

(Alexandria, Virginia) – 60 Plus Chairman Jim Martin, leader of the most prominent conservative seniors advocacy group in the nation, responded today to reports that high-level EPA administrators met secretly with environmental activists in the coal-rich counties of eastern Kentucky.   This visit comes on the heels of an extreme EPA regulation proposal on ozone that would cripple the coal industry and devastate local communities in some of the most economically challenged areas of the nation.

“As a native of Hazard, Kentucky and the son of a coal miner who also had several uncles who worked in the mines, I can attest that everyone from the Bluegrass State knows that coal is king.  The EPA is planning a palace coup behind the backs of local communities and hard-working Kentuckians, and their plans to add radical regulations to coal will cause energy prices to skyrocket nationwide and kill jobs where people need them most.

“It is a disgrace and insult to the voters of this great state that a federal agency would conduct meetings behind the back of the sitting U.S. Congressman, the great Harold Rogers (R), who now represents my former home.  For an Administration that promised to be the most transparent in history, this shadowy behavior is unacceptable and ultimately divisive.

“If this Administration’s radical anti-coal and anti-energy environmental policy sees the light of day, it will kill millions of jobs and literally cost seniors their lives.  Let’s not forget that over 50% of America’s electricity comes from coal, and when the EPA targets coal, the cost of energy will go up and we will see an increase in the number of low-income seniors that die in their homes from extreme temperatures, such as we saw in Chicago in 1995.

“I applaud the swift and forceful leadership of Congressman Rogers for standing up to the EPA and forcing them to acknowledge that their actions will kill jobs and hurt average Americans the most.  The reality is that America needs a thriving and prosperous coal industry to meet its energy demands.  It is time to stop playing political games and find a way to bridge the divide between those who claim the environmental mandate and those (for example, coal producers) who are responsible for providing our nation’s sorely needed energy resources.”

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