Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is planning an amendment to an upcoming spending bill that could put the brakes on the EPA’s plans to implement new regulations on carbon emissions from existing power plants, reports Roll Call’s Niels Lesniewski .  

While it is unusual for the Kentucky Republican to appear at an Appropriations Committee gathering in person, he has maintained his seat and influence on the panel.  

“I’m going to continue to fight. Kentuckians deserve no less. I’m going to keep vigorously fighting against the Obama Administration’s continued War on Coal Jobs – and this extreme, anti-Middle Class national energy tax in particular,” McConnell said in a statement.
According to a senior GOP aide, the McConnell amendment would require certification that neither electricity prices would go up, nor jobs be eliminated, as a result of implementing new rules on existing power plants. Without such a certification, the rules would not be able to move forward. The Environmental Protection Agency outlined its plans on June 2, and McConnell has been pledging to use any tools at his disposal to stop the action.