Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, California Democrat, is escalating his probe into the Environmental Protection Agency's decision to reject California's desire to create stricter vehicle emission standards.
Today he said he plans to hold a hearing in April with EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson as the star witness. This week he issued a subpoena requiring EPA personnel to give him unredacted copies of documents associated with California's application.
"Despite several requests for these documents, EPA has refused to provide them to the committee," Waxman said in a statement. "The desire to conceal embarrassing facts is not a valid legal basis for withholding these documents from the committee."
Waxman is worried that EPA officials used politics, rather than recommendations from its independent science advisors, as the driving force behind its decision to reject California's proposal.
Waxman's office said it is also concerned about Johnson's rejection of recommendations from the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee during deliberations for updating the national ambient air quality standard.
-- Carrie Sheffield, Web editor, The Washington Times
Comments (1)
The Constitution of the United States leaves ALL such decisions that involve interstate business to the federal government, not the individual states. Arnold ought to read the Constitution before promoting anymore of these "Nation of California" policies. Waxman, as usual, is fishing for anything whatsoever that might embarass the administration.He simply HATES Bush. I don't like Bush myself but Waxman does not have the luxury of indulging personal hatred against a sitting president.
Posted by Doug W | March 17, 2008 10:31 AM