Congress moves to strip EPA of power to regulate vehicle and power-plant emissions
H.R. 9453 — End EPA Abuse Act of 2026 · Filed by Andrew Clyde (R-GA) · 25 cosponsors · Introduced Jun 25, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill amends the Clean Air Act to block the EPA from issuing regulations that restrict vehicle sales (including gas-powered cars), require power plants to switch fuels, reduce electric grid reliability, mandate commercially unavailable or cost-prohibitive technology, or expand EPA authority beyond congressional intent. The stated purpose is to preserve consumer vehicle choice and protect the electric grid, but the operative effect is to strip the EPA of authority to regulate emissions from vehicles and power generation.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is a blanket prohibition on EPA emissions regulations for vehicles and power plants, framed as 'consumer choice' and 'grid protection' but functionally gutting the EPA's delegated authority under the Clean Air Act. The title 'End EPA Abuse' is a rhetorical wrapper around a substantive deregulation.
What the text implies
- The 'cost-prohibitive' and 'commercially unavailable' language creates a regulatory veto for any technology not yet mass-produced, effectively freezing emissions standards at current technology levels and blocking innovation incentives.
- The 'electric grid reliability' carve-out may block EPA authority to regulate methane leakage from natural gas infrastructure, even though methane is a potent greenhouse gas and grid reliability is not materially threatened by emissions rules.
- The 'otherwise significantly expand authority' catch-all is undefined and invites litigation, creating regulatory uncertainty that may chill EPA action even on rules that do not trigger the explicit prohibitions.
- By blocking fuel-switching requirements at power plants, the bill insulates coal and natural gas generation from EPA pressure to transition to renewables, locking in fossil-fuel infrastructure investment.
- The bill does not require cost-benefit analysis or public health findings; it is a categorical prohibition regardless of health impact, meaning EPA cannot weigh air-quality gains against industry compliance costs.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
The bill strips the EPA of core authority to regulate vehicle emissions and power-plant fuel switching—two major sources of air pollution and climate forcing. Citizens lose access to cleaner air and the health benefits of emissions controls. The bill's framing around 'consumer choice' and 'grid reliability' masks a functional deregulation that prioritizes fossil-fuel vehicle sales and coal/gas power generation over public health.
Who stands to gain
- fossil fuel producers (coal, oil, natural gas)
- internal combustion engine manufacturers
- coal-fired and natural gas power plants
- automotive suppliers dependent on ICE technology
Named in the bill
EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), Clean Air Act, 40 CFR 63.9375 (internal combustion engine definition), power plants, electric grid operators
Where it stands
25 cosponsors: 25 Republicans.
- Jun 25, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jun 25, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
1 lobbying clients named this bill on 1 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $140,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 40 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 0% of bills with at least one filing.
Andrew Clyde, the sponsor, reported $122,592 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- Heritage Action for America — $140,000 on 1 filing
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 16, 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 (1,991 characters) on Jul 5, 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 Jun 2026 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 16, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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