Today, West Virginia Congressmen David B. McKinley, P.E., Alex X. Mooney, and Evan Jenkins condemned the new Office of Surface Mining stream buffer zone rule. According to a 2012 study, a new Stream Buffer Zone rule could kill between 55,150 and 79,870 coal related mining jobs across the U.S.

“Will this rule help create jobs? Will it make us energy independent? Will it improve our economy? Enough is enough. This rule is one more example of an out-of-control Administration writing rules just because they can, not because the science backs them up,” said Rep. McKinley. 

“These new regulations would be catastrophic to the coal industry and all of the hardworking American families that depend on coal to keep their energy costs low. I will continue to work with my colleagues on the Natural Resources Committee to make sure that my bill, H.R. 1644, also known as the STREAM Act, moves swiftly through the committee process before any real damage can be done by this harmful rule,” said Rep. Mooney.

"I am outraged that the administration is moving forward with the job-killing stream buffer zone rule. I've spent months talking with our West Virginia coal miners and know how worried they are that this rule will cost them their jobs. They're worried this rule will make it harder not only to mine but for them to put food on the table and provide for their families,” said Rep. Jenkins. "The administration continues to ignore the consequences of their regulations on West Virginia's families and West Virginia's economy. As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, I have fought to use the power of the purse to keep these regulations from being forced on us. I fought to defund the stream buffer zone rule in committee and will continue to use every tool available to push back against this administration’s regulatory overreach and its war on coal. West Virginians deserve to be heard."

Rep. McKinley is a cosponsor of Rep. Mooney’s H.R. 1644, the STREAM Act, which would prevent implementation of the new stream buffer zone rule. Rep. Jenkins is also a co-sponsors of the STREAM Act.