Dive Brief:

• The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) is urging state legislators to oppose carbon emissions standards for existing power plants, which are being developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
• NRECA made its case this month at meetings held by the National Conference of State Legislatures and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative organization.
• ALEC’s Energy, Environment and Agriculture Task Force passed a resolution opposing EPA’s plan to regulate greenhouse gases from existing plants. ALEC's board will consider the resolution at an upcoming meeting.

Dive Insight:

EPA intends to release its plan for limiting carbon emissions from existing power plants in June, but the lobbying is already underway. NRECA, whose members tend to be smaller utilities, is concerned about the potential cost of limiting GHG emissions.

“We urge EPA to recognize the unique characteristics of non-for-profit rural electric cooperatives and not impose new carbon rules that will threaten the highly valuable existing power generation resources,” John Novak, NRECA senior director for environmental issues, said.