Congress kills EPA pollution limits for tire factories
H.J.Res. 61 — Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Environmental Protection Agency relating to "National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Rubber Tire Manufacturing". · Filed by H. Griffith (R-VA) · 20 cosponsors · Introduced Feb 25, 2025 · Signed
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What it does
This is a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution that kills an EPA rule tightening air-pollution standards for rubber tire manufacturing plants. The rule, published in November 2024, set stricter limits on hazardous air pollutants emitted during tire production. Congress is voting to disapprove it, meaning the rule is void and the EPA cannot re-issue it in substantially the same form without new legislative authority.
Why we flagged it
This is a straightforward Congressional Review Act disapproval resolution targeting an EPA environmental rule. CRA resolutions are procedural instruments that invoke a fast-track mechanism to overturn agency rules; this one targets pollution controls in tire manufacturing.
What the text implies
- Once a CRA disapproval passes, the EPA is statutorily barred from issuing a substantially similar rule without explicit new congressional authorization—effectively locking in deregulation unless Congress acts affirmatively to reverse course.
- The disapproval removes baseline protections for workers and communities near tire manufacturing facilities; any future EPA action would require overcoming the same political hurdle that passed this resolution.
- Tire manufacturers operating in states with their own air-quality standards may still face state-level controls, but federal baseline protections are eliminated, creating a patchwork of compliance obligations.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Disapproving the rule removes pollution controls on a manufacturing sector, allowing higher emissions of hazardous air pollutants near tire plants. Workers in those facilities and nearby communities face increased exposure to toxic substances without the regulatory floor the rule provided. The public loses a health protection; the industry gains regulatory relief.
Who stands to gain
- tire manufacturers
- rubber processing companies
Named in the bill
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, tire manufacturing industry, rubber tire manufacturers
Where it stands
20 cosponsors: 20 Republicans.
- Feb 25, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Feb 25, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce”
- Mar 5, 2025 — Passed the House · Congress.gov: “On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 216 - 202 (Roll no. 58). (text: CR H986)”
- May 6, 2025 — Passed both chambers · Congress.gov: “Passed Senate without amendment by Yea-Nay Vote. 55 - 45. Record Vote Number: 232”
- May 16, 2025 — Sent to president · Congress.gov: “Presented to President”
- May 23, 2025 — Signed into law · Congress.gov: “Became Public Law No: 119-14”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
2 lobbying clients named this bill on 4 disclosure filings across 3 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $120,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 31 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.
More lobbying clients named this bill than 41% of bills with at least one filing.
H. Griffith, the sponsor, reported $1,286,206 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association — $120,000 on 1 filing
- Network — $0 on 3 filings
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,116 characters) on Jun 10, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 20, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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