Environmental Deregulation: Experts Stunned by Trump’s New AI Rules

Practical Aspects: Policy Implications and Future Directions

The Trump administration’s loosening of AI regulations will likely lead to increased regulatory burdens on industries and consumers, with potential economic impacts on businesses and individuals.

• The policy would also create uncertainty and compliance challenges for companies and governments, particularly in the renewable energy sector.
• However, the policy would also provide new opportunities for innovation and growth in the AI industry.
The policy would require industries to develop and implement new safety protocols and procedures to prevent the misuse of AI technologies.

Despite these challenges, the policy would also provide new opportunities for the AI industry to demonstrate its capabilities and contributions to the broader economy.

Carbon Border Adjustable Tariffs: A New Approach to Reducing Emissions

• Carbon border adjustable tariffs (CBATs) are a new policy mechanism that aims to reduce emissions from industrial activities.
• The Biden administration has led efforts to advance US leadership in AI and the new Trump administration has also stated it will prioritize US AI leadership.

The Future of Environmental Policy: Challenges and Opportunities

The Biden administration has announced plans to strengthen the Clean Air Act, including measures to regulate carbon emissions from industrial activities.

The proposed legislation would also address air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, and would provide new opportunities for the development of low-carbon technologies.
• The legislation would also provide new opportunities for the development of renewable energy sources, including solar and wind power.
• However, the policy would also require significant investments in infrastructure and research and development.

The Role of AI in Environmental Policy: A Growing Priority

• As AI technology continues to evolve, policymakers are recognizing its potential as a key tool in addressing environmental challenges.
• AI can be used to optimize energy efficiency, reduce emissions, and promote the development of renewable energy sources.

The Intersection of Technology and Environmental Policy

In conclusion, the current environmental deregulations and policy changes mark a significant shift in the way the United States approaches environmental protection.

The Clean Power Plan, Affordable Clean Energy, and carbon border adjustable tariffs are just a few examples of the complex and multifaceted nature of environmental policy.

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Source Information:

• Over the past few months, various federal agencies have finalized major environmental deregulations marking the end of, in some cases, years-long processes.
• The rules vary in consequence, from walking back pesticide bans to encouraging fossil fuel extraction on federal lands, weakening emissions standards, and even countering previous Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) findings.
• The Center on Regulation and Markets has been tracking these ongoing deregulations.
• A sampling of some of the most consequential environmental revisions and rescissions to date are listed below.
• The Clean Power Plan Finalized in 2015, the Clean Power Plan (CPP) was proposed by the Obama administration in June 2014 and intended to reduce electricity sector greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
• The CPP established carbon dioxide (CO2) emission performance rates for two subcategories of fossil fuel-fired electric generating units.
• CO2 is the most prevalent greenhouse gas pollutant, accounting for 82 percent of U.S. GHG emissions (using 2017 figures).
• At the time of the rule, the electricity sector was responsible for approximately 30 percent of the United States’ overall GHG emissions.
• EPA estimated that by 2030, CPP would reduce carbon pollution from the electricity sector 32 percent below 2005 levels.
• Likewise, sulfur dioxide emissions from power plants were predicted to drop by 90 percent and nitrogen oxides emissions by 72 percent.
• The reductions under CPP were expected to prevent an estimated 3,600 premature deaths each year.
• In March 2017, just two months after his inauguration, President Trump issued an Executive Order directing EPA to review the CPP.
• In October that same year, EPA proposed to rescind the policy.
• While EPA worked to repeal the Clean Power Plan, the administration considered possible replacement policies in response to EPA’s 2009 endangerment findings that determined current GHG concentrations in the atmosphere posed a threat to public health and welfare.
• In August 2018, EPA proposed the Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule as CPP’s replacement.
• Unlike CPP, ACE did not set GHG emission guidelines for states using emission performance rates.
• ACE used these BSERs to provide states with a list of “candidate technologies” to establish standards of performance by the states.
• EPA’s Regulatory Impact Analysis predicted that, relative to CPP, the replacement rule would increase CO2 emissions by over 60 million short tons by 2030.
• In June 2019, EPA finalized three rules implementing ACE and its set emissions.
• The state of New York, along with 21 other states and seven cities, filed a lawsuit seeking a review of the action.
• The states claimed ACE does not meaningfully reduce GHG emissions, violating EPA’s duty to address carbon pollution from power plants under the Clean Air Act.
• Mercury and Air Toxic Standards Under the Mercury and Air Toxic Standards (MATS), coal- and oil-burning power plants are required to reduce the emission of mercury and other toxic pollutants, including arsenic, nickel, and acid gases.
• These plants are the foremost emitters of mercury in the U.S., and exposure to mercury has been linked to certain neurological disorders, cardiovascular harm, and weakened immune systems.
• In 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that EPA must weigh the costs to industry, in addition to public health and environmental risks.
• In accordance with the Michigan v. EPA ruling, EPA published a cost finding the same year concluding that MATS were “appropriate and necessary” regulations for coal- and oil-based power plants under the Clean Air Act, a key finding that allowed for MATS regulation.
• On December 27, 2018, EPA proposed to revise its previous cost finding, altering the calculations used for costs to human health and safety.
• Under the new 17th Cleantech manufacturing: Overall investment in cleantech reached a record US$71 billion in the third quarter of 2024,17 Quarterly records in the retail and manufacturing segments drove the overall record despite tax guidance uncertainty and other factors that contributed to some project delays.17 Project delays continued, with most of the announced projects not yet breaking ground and 60% slated to begin operations during the next four years.17
• Protection of reshored industry from unfair trade practices will likely translate into continuation of the tariffs imposed in 2024 on solar and batteries.18 AI: AI is a growing policy priority among policymakers that is expected to remain a key issue in 2025. The Biden administration has led efforts to advance US leadership in AI and the new Trump administration has also stated it will prioritize US AI leadership. Given the AI industry’s high energy needs, efforts to expedite permitting for energy projects serving data centers are likely to continue. Public-private collaboration enabling renewably powered data centers may also continue given the net-zero commitments in the tech sector. Carbon: US industrial policy is also building on multiple Congressional initiatives to measure the carbon intensity of industrial products, including solar panels and wind turbines to leverage the US carbon edge in trade policy.19 Such measurement paved the way for carbon border adjustable tariffs in the European Union.20 Legislative and regulatory areas to watch that could impact renewable deployment for these industries in 2025: Legislation Lawmakers may continue to consider permitting reform proposals—another area of bipartisan interest—to facilitate energy project development. The imperative to accelerate new generation and transmission could also help ease major bottlenecks for the existing pipeline of renewable projects to come online. President-elect Donald Trump’s stated priorities include lifting a ban on new liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports targeting non-FTA countries as offtakers, and, as part of permitting reform, expediting LNG terminal development.21 Export capacity with existing projects is already slated to grow 86%, with projects starting to come into service by early 2025.22 The upward pressure and exposure to volatility this would place on natural gas prices could enhance the relative competitiveness of renewables vis-à-vis gas in power production. Meanwhile, EU rules to reduce methane emissions could boost US production of lower carbon gas regardless of US regulatory requirements. US exporters of LNG seeking to serve the European market could potentially create additional demand for renewable natural gas. Regulation Recent Supreme Court rulings could continue to create uncertainty about the future regulatory environment and the impacts on energy-related rules. These rulings include: The revocation of doctrine granting deference to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes23 An expanded statute of limitations to challenge rules24 Curtailed administrative authority to enforce penalties25 A stay of agency rules in an emergency appeal26 While the Court turned down three other emergency docket requests to stay EPA rules on reducing mercury, methane, and carbon emissions,27 these rules remain in litigation and could be impacted by changes with a new administration.
• The revocation of doctrine granting deference to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes would limit EPA’s ability to take enforcement actions in cases where agency interpretations are unclear or disputed.
• The expanded statute of limitations would give EPA more time to challenge agency interpretations and bring enforcement actions to bear on cases where agency interpretations are unclear or disputed.
• The curtailed administrative authority to enforce penalties would allow EPA to take enforcement actions more quickly in cases where agency interpretations are unclear or disputed.
• The stay of agency rules in an emergency appeal would allow EPA to take enforcement actions more quickly in cases where agency interpretations are unclear or disputed.
• While the Court turned down three other emergency docket requests to stay EPA rules on reducing mercury, methane, and carbon emissions, these rules remain in litigation and could be impacted by changes with a new administration.

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The Future of Environmental Policy: Challenges and Opportunities

The Biden administration has led efforts to advance US leadership in AI and the new Trump administration has also stated it will prioritize US AI leadership.

Given the AI industry’s high energy needs, efforts to expedite permitting for energy projects serving data centers are likely to continue.

Public-private collaboration enabling renewably powered data centers may also continue given the net-zero commitments in the tech sector.

Carbon: US industrial policy is also building on multiple Congressional initiatives to measure the carbon intensity of industrial products, including solar panels and wind turbines to leverage the US carbon edge in trade policy.

Such measurement paved the way for carbon border adjustable tariffs in the European Union.

Legislative and regulatory areas to watch that could impact renewable deployment for these industries in 2025: Legislation Lawmakers may continue to consider permitting reform proposals—another area of bipartisan interest—to facilitate energy project development.

The imperative to accelerate new generation and transmission could also help ease major bottlenecks for the existing pipeline of renewable projects to come online.

President-elect Donald Trump’s stated priorities include lifting a ban on new liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports targeting non-FTA countries as offtakers, and, as part of permitting reform, expediting LNG terminal development.

Export capacity with existing projects is already slated to grow 86%, with projects starting to come into service by early 2025.

The upward pressure and exposure to volatility this would place on natural gas prices could enhance the relative competitiveness of renewables vis-à-vis gas in power production.

Meanwhile, EU rules to reduce methane emissions could boost US production of lower carbon gas regardless of US regulatory requirements.

US exporters of LNG seeking to serve the European market could potentially create additional demand for renewable natural gas.

Regulation Recent Supreme Court rulings could continue to create uncertainty about the future regulatory environment and the impacts on energy-related rules.

These rulings include: The revocation of doctrine granting deference to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes23 An expanded statute of limitations to challenge rules24 Curtailed administrative