NEW REGULATIONS COMING

Scores of Obama Regulations Coming.

Here are 3 to Watch for…

Power plants
In June, President Obama announced a major new initiative to combat climate change that would set limits on carbon pollution from power plants.

His proposal addresses both existing and yet-to-be-built plants, which will be addressed in separate rules from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The first of those proposals, on new power plants, has been sent to the White House budget office for a review and is scheduled to be released to the public by September 20.

Biofuel
Sometime in August, the EPA is scheduled to issue its final determinations for the annual amount of biofuel to be mixed with traditional gasoline as part of a renewable fuel program.

Called the Renewable Fuel Standard, the EPA-administered program calls for 36 billion gallons of biofuel to be blended into gas by 2022, a requirement opponents have criticized as governmental overreach.

The oil and gas industry has warned about an approaching “blend wall,” at which point the government would require a gas mix beyond what cars can handle.

Automobile companies have already warned that owners’ warranties will be void if they use a blend of 15 percent ethanol, known as E15, even though the EPA has said since 2011 that the blend is fine for cars.

ObamaCare penalty
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is gearing up to finalize its rules for the penalty that will be charged to people who do not carry health insurance.

Under the Affordable Care Act, people without health insurance who do not qualify for an exemption will be charged a penalty.

The agency proposed in January to set that penalty as either a flat amount of $95 per year or 1 percent of household income, though the amount will rise in future years.