Manufacturing group supports President Trump’s decision to halt Clean Power Plan

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) has voiced its support for President Donald Trump’s recent decision to scrap the Clean Power Plan.

NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons said manufacturers could “feel a tremendous sense of relief” thanks to the Trump administration making “the right decision” to end a policy “that threatened manufacturers’ access to affordable, reliable energy and did not even adhere to existing law.”

“Manufacturers have led the way in sustainability and greenhouse gas reductions for many years, but this regulation simply went too far, threatening our jobs and our livelihoods. We fought it in court, we spoke out forcefully, and today manufacturers — and the American people — have won,” Timmons said.

Timmons called manufacturers “champions of responsible environmental stewardship,” and said he believes the industry can “achieve that objective while still driving incredible economic growth that empowers families to raise their standards of living.”

“Looking ahead, greenhouse gas policies should be made in a thoughtful, deliberative and transparent process that protects manufacturers’ ability to create good jobs at home and compete and win around the world,” Timmons said.

Critics of Trump’s decision on the Clean Power Plan believe the Obama-era rule was a game-changer when it came to curbing carbon emissions, but it was actually placed on hold by the U.S. Supreme Court and referred back to the appellate before the November 2016 elections.

Scott Pruitt, director of the Environmental Protection Agency for the administration, started rolling back the plan on Oct. 10.