The Senate voted to overturn a Biden administration rule regulating
greenhouse gas emissions on the federal highway system Wednesday, with
three red state Democrats joining every Republican.

The rule would require local and state transit officials to set emissions
limits. It does not impose specific limits for those officials to set.
Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Jon Tester (D-
Mont.), as well as Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), were among the 53 votes
in favor of Wednesday�s Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution. The CRA
allows a simple majority of both chambers of Congress to vote down a
federal rule.

The White House said President Biden will veto the measure should it pass
the House and reach his desk.

The Senate vote comes less than two weeks after Judge James Hendrix, an
appointee of former President Trump, struck down the rule, agreeing with a
coalition of Republican state attorneys general that it was beyond the
scope of federal oversight of the highway system.

Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), who co-sponsored the resolution, specifically
cited Hendrix�s ruling in a statement Wednesday. Cramer, Manchin and Sen.
Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) earlier introduced an amendment to a must-
pass appropriations bill defunding the rule, but it failed to clear a 60-
vote threshold.

While neither Sinema nor Manchin are seeking reelection, both Brown and
Tester face grueling reelection fights in November in states where former
President Trump is heavily favored. The two have voted for multiple CRA
resolutions targeting Biden administration environmental rules, including
one last May to end a pause on tariffs on solar panel components.

Transportation is the single largest source of greenhouse gas emissions,
which the Biden administration has pledged to reduce to net zero by 2050.
Conservation group Evergreen Action blasted the vote in a statement
Wednesday.

�If this measure is overturned, we would lose an essential transparency
standard to track dangerous climate pollution and a vital tool to hold
states accountable for spending tax-payer dollars in ways that accelerate
the climate crisis,� Evergreen Action state program director Justin Balik
said in a statement.

https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/4587888-senate-votes-
overturn-biden-highway-emissions-rule-red-state-democrats/