Voters Support the EPA’s Proposed Rules on Coal- and Gas-Fired Power Plants
By Kate Sosland and Kevin Hanley
Newly proposed rules from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce pollution from coal- and gas-fired power plants have recently come under fire from the utility industry’s biggest trade group, Edison Electric Institute (EEI). In light of this, Data for Progress conducted polling revealing that a majority of voters support the EPA’s proposed pollution rules and think their local utility company should also support them.
The new poll from Data for Progress finds that 65 percent of likely voters support the EPA’s proposed pollution rules, including +76-point net support from Democrats, +39-point net support from Independents, and even +6-point net support from Republicans.
A clear majority of voters want their utility companies to prioritize clean energy like wind and solar (59%), including 58% of Independents. Black voters (68%) and Latino voters (66%) are more likely to believe their utility companies should prioritize clean energy.
More directly, the survey finds that a majority of voters (54%) think that their utility company should support the EPA pollution rules on coal- and gas-fired power plants. This includes 76% of Democrats and 53% of Independents. Fifty-two percent of Republicans believe their utility companies should either support (31%) the EPA rules or take a neutral stance (21%), signaling that there is limited opposition to the rules when it comes to local utility companies. Black voters (62%) are more likely to say their local utility company should align with the EPA pollution rules.
Lastly, after a brief introduction to the utility company practice of using revenue from customers’ monthly bills to fund activities such as lobbying, advertising, and trade association membership dues, a bipartisan majority of voters (76%) disapprove of this practice. This finding is consistent across partisanship, with disapproval from strong majorities of Democrats (74%), Independents (78%), and Republicans (76%).
As utility companies decide their stances on the EPA’s newly proposed rules, it is crucial that these companies consider their customers’ viewpoints. EEI’s extreme stance is out of step with voters and the decarbonization commitments of the utilities it represents. With up to an estimated $85 billion in public health and climate benefits on the table, voters across demographic groups strongly support the EPA’s proposed regulations and believe utility companies should support them, too.
Kate Sosland (@kate_sosland) is a communications intern at Data for Progress.
Kevin Hanley (@kebhanley) is a polling analyst at Data for Progress.