A pair of bills aimed at shaping the nation's energy policy - including one that would limit the federal Environmental Protection Agency's ability to regulate new coal-fired power plants - passed through the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday.

The Energy Security and Affordability Act, co-authored by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky., targets new EPA carbon emissions standards for coal-fired power plants that critics of the rules say can't be achieved using existing technology, effectively barring the construction of any new generating stations that burn coal.

It cleared the committee by a vote of 29-19. The committee's membership includes 30 Republicans and 24 Democrats.

The Manchin-Whitfield bill would bar the EPA from enacting standards until at least six U.S. power plants have achieved them for 12 consecutive months. It also would require the agency to provide Congress with a detailed study of the potential economic impact of any new rule.

Even if passed by the GOP-led House, the bill is likely to face opposition in the Senate, where Democrats hold a slim majority. Manchin acknowledged that pushing the legislation through the Senate will be a "heavy lift" during an energy forum in Washington earlier this month.

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