The House passed legislation Wednesday to ease air pollution regulations around prescribed burns, which land management agencies use to reduce the likelihood of future wildfires.
Republican supporters, including bill sponsor Gabe Evans (R-Colo.), said the measure would help communities that sometimes fall out of attainment with the Clean Air Act for using the controlled burns.
Many Democrats opposed the bill, H.R. 6387, which passed on a 220-198 vote. Led by Energy and Commerce ranking Democrat Frank Pallone of New Jersey, they said it would go much further than advertised, allowing clean-air exemptions for any pollution occurring during weather events like droughts or extreme heat.
Ultimately, they said, the bill won’t encourage more prescribed fire but will give industries a pass to pollute more due to more declarations of “exceptional events” that don’t count toward air standard violations.
