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Jean Chemnick

@chemnick.bsky.social
1.5K followers 1.6K following 74 posts

EPA reporter with POLITICO. I cover climate and air policy at the federal level. E&ENews alum. Reach me on Signal at jchemnick.01

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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Politico @politico.com · 09/09/2026
‘No good options’: GOP’s midterm hopes suffer under energy inflation
dlvr.it
‘No good options’: GOP’s midterm hopes suffer under energy inflation
Relentlessly rising fuel costs are feeding inflation and threatening Republican reelection chances.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Kevin Bogardus @kevinbogardus.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
I wanted to know how much EPA spent on admin leave after 1000s were paid not to work, often for months So I filed a #FOIA —> EPA denied me —> I appealed —> I won And EPA spent almost $200M on leave Many never returned to work #FOIA4eva More here: subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026...
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
EPA wants states to stop letting the public weigh in on most air permits -- including for data centers and the gas-fired generation that powers them. subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026...
subscriber.politicopro.com
POLITICO Pro: John Q. Who? EPA effort to cut public comment draws green backlash.
EPA proposed cutting public engagement requirements for some air permits. Environmentalists say that will lead to dirtier air.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
A proposal to end EPA regulation of power plant carbon is under White House review as of Monday. It's likely to come out with a final repeal of Biden-era standards. Will that be before or after Oct. 5, when SCOTUS hears oral arguments in Suncor? subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
subscriber.politicopro.com
E&E News: Power plant endangerment repeal enters White House review
The supplemental proposal was submitted on Monday and will be released with a final repeal of Biden-era rules.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
EPA says the Clean Air Act gives it no power to regulate greenhouse gases. The Trump DOJ is telling SCOTUS that the Clean Air Act gives EPA alone power to regulate greenhouse gases. 🐱and ☠️🐱. www.eenews.net/articles/a-s...
eenews.net
A Supreme Court case may be slowing Trump’s next climate rollback
“EPA is trying to have their cake and eat it, too,” said one environmental lawyer.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
EPA's GHG regulatory authority: 🐱and 👻🐱 www.eenews.net/articles/a-s...
eenews.net
A Supreme Court case may be slowing Trump’s next climate rollback
“EPA is trying to have their cake and eat it, too,” said one environmental lawyer.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Investors may underestimate the risk climate change poses to their portfolios. Experts I talked to say federal regulatory agencies are making those threats less transparent, increasing the likelihood of a brutal repricing down the line. subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
subscriber.politicopro.com
E&E News: The stock market may have a climate change problem
The president’s favorite indicator of economic health will have to reckon with the woes of a warming planet.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Power providers are counting on the demise of the 2024 power plant carbon rules, with their CCS standards. But their resource plans show they're less confident that they won't be regulated for climate change sometime in the future. www.eenews.net/articles/pow...
eenews.net
Power companies are still planning for climate regulation. Sort of.
Utilities are leaning into a regulatory future free of carbon restrictions. But they are mindful of a potential future about-face.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Chelsea Harvey @chelseaeharvey.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
The retirement of RCP8.5 — former worst-case climate scenario has been in the news recently, and I’ve seen a lot of good explainers about this very misunderstood modeling tool. But an angle I think has been missing: the former best-case scenario is also out. My story: www.eenews.net/articles/the...
eenews.net
The worst-case climate scenario is gone. The catch? The best case is, too.
Inside the demise of a 15-year-old modeling scenario built off the worst possibilities scientists could imagine.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Kyle Cheney @kyledcheney.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
NEW: Todd Blanche has mastered the audience of one — in part by keeping him out of prison. The audience of 100 is a tougher sell. w/ @joshgerstein.bsky.social @eorden www.politico.com/news/2026/06...
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
U.S. manufacturers say that EPA's recent rule giving supermarkets more time to start buying the more climate-friendly refrigeration systems they developed will hurt them and help their Chinese competitors. My piece: www.eenews.net/articles/epa...
eenews.net
EPA’s HFC delay tests Trump’s made in America agenda
The agency's regulatory rollback for grocery refrigerators has sparked a backlash from U.S. manufacturers.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Chelsea Harvey @chelseaeharvey.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
I worked hard on this story, it's important, & I want to share it. I'm also finding it difficult to put it out there without this context: Just as I wrapped up final edits last week, I got word that a friend vacationing in Arizona had died after overheating on a hike. www.eenews.net/articles/dea...
eenews.net
Deadly heat is coming. But funding to save lives is not.
Emergency officials are searching for loopholes to save lives as President Donald Trump slashes programs.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Politico @politico.com · 01/06/2026
The dock that launched America’s offshore wind industry now sits mostly empty. Only remnants of the project remain. As Trump has made combatting offshore wind a hallmark of his second term, a blue-collar town is at the center of it all.
politico.com
It Was Supposed to Be a Lifeline for a Blue-Collar Town. Then Trump Returned.
New Bedford, Massachusetts is ground zero for America’s wind industry.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Is this the fewest monetized values EPA has ever looked at in a regulatory impact analysis? Or memo? My piece: subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
subscriber.politicopro.com
E&E News: The hidden costs behind EPA’s HFC delay
EPA’s refrigerator rule rollback rests on a one-sided ledger.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
EPA's rule letting grocery stores buy HFC-based refrigeration systems through 2032 gives a dollar value only to upfront costs of buying an HFC product vs. a HFC-free product. No monetized values for employment, other industries, health, climate.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
EPA is calling regulatory impact analyses for rules (like the recent HFC technology transition change) regulatory impact "memos." What are they doing there?
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
EPA's power plant carbon rule repeal has landed at OMB. Anybody know what might have changed since the proposal? What did they do about causation/endangerment/whatnot? I'm at jchemnick.01 on Signal. Thank you, and happy Friday!
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
This is really a cool resource, and I didn't know it existed. A group called Climate Literacy has preserved all the climate databases and analytical tools that were removed from agency websites (EPA, Ag) in one place: www.climateliteracy.earth/us-federal-r...
climateliteracy.earth
US Federal Climate Info Finder — climateliteracy.earth
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
EPA Chief Lee Zeldin is good at tailoring his message to MAGA media. But that sometimes puts him at odds with EPA's official justifications for actions -- whether it be a rule or the cancellation of a grant. And that could be a liability if he moves over to DOJ: www.eenews.net/articles/fro...
eenews.net
From EPA to DOJ? Zeldin’s words may haunt him.
The EPA chief’s partisan attacks energize the base but risk weakening cases he’d oversee if he's named attorney general.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
EPA finalized its endangerment finding repeal on legal grounds. But today, Zeldin told the Heartland gathering that their view that greenhouse gases would be net beneficial to humanity would be proved right in the coming decades as harmful warming fails to materialize.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
EPA is due to finalize its repeal of Biden power plant climate rules in "early spring." Tick tock. It hasn't gone to OMB. But there is growing speculation that it will pull the rule back based on a critique of CCS, with a supplemental "endangerment" draft. subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
subscriber.politicopro.com
E&E News: Why EPA may need a new strategy to repeal power plant pollution limits
The agency is expected to soon finalize the repeal, which was proposed before the Trump administration's elimination of the 2009 endangerment finding.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Chelsea Harvey @chelseaeharvey.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
The unprecedented heat wave currently enveloping the western U.S. could portend intensifying drought, water shortages, strong summer heat and intense wildfires later this year, scientists warn. My story: 🔏https://www.eenews.net/articles/alarm-bells-early-western-heat-wave-foreshadows-future-danger/
eenews.net
‘Alarm bells’: Early Western heat wave foreshadows future danger
Vanishing snowpack, dwindling water supplies, high summer heat and severe wildfires could all be in store later this season.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
EPA's endangerment finding and car rules repeal suggested that oil prices fall because of Trump policies. Lower future prices at the pump would mean consumers pay less for policies that keep demand high. But then came Trump's war... www.eenews.net/articles/epa...
eenews.net
EPA tied its climate rollback to low oil prices. Then came the Iran war.
The Trump administration relied on rosy price estimates to argue that repealing emissions limits for cars would save consumers money.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Ariel Wittenberg @arielwittenberg.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
Trump wants more data centers to generate their own power. But living next to tech industry gas turbines has made this VA neighborhood "unbearable" due to noise. One resident is taking sleeping pills, another can't walk his dog. My latest for @eenews.bsky.social www.eenews.net/articles/one...
eenews.net
One obstacle for Trump’s AI power pledge: The neighbors
Getting data centers to generate their own electricity may ease one obstacle to public acceptance of data centers. But it creates new hurdles.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
The Clean Air Act is a somewhat clunky instrument for tackling climate change -- at least for some sectors. So, if the Clean Air Act is going to be broadly unavailable for greenhouse gas regulation post-endangerment repeal, what comes after that? www.eenews.net/articles/Why...
eenews.net
Why the Clean Air Act was never a ‘good fit’ for climate
The lawyers who successfully won the law’s climate authority once thought of it as a placeholder for stronger legislation.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Chelsea Harvey @chelseaeharvey.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Trump administration cuts, layoffs and restructurings have cast a shadow over U.S. participation in a major international climate modeling initiative -- a collaboration that federal scientists have been at the forefront of for decades. My story today: www.eenews.net/articles/tru...
eenews.net
Trump cuts threaten US role in global climate modeling
Agency cuts, layoffs and policy shifts are throwing America’s role into question.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Chelsea Harvey @chelseaeharvey.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Dispatch from my other life: Our upcoming concerts (Mar 13 & 14!) celebrate composer & long-time Cantori collaborator Adolphus Hailstork. I wrote a lil note on the program, which explores themes of freedom, resistance to tyranny & rebuilding after devastating conflict. 👇 www.van.org/articles/Can...
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
The fact that Congress has signed off on Clean Air Act methane rules (three times, actually. CRA,IRA,OBBBA) could be a problem as EPA prepares to defend the endangerment repeal. www.eenews.net/articles/the...
eenews.net
The awkward exception in EPA’s climate repeal: Methane
The agency’s effort to maintain methane rules could create legal woes as it argues greenhouse gas curbs lack clear congressional backing.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals sounded highly skeptical of EPA's case for cancelling the "green bank" grants yesterday, though that probably doesn't mean the nonprofits will be able to access their award funds anytime soon. Takeaways with @lesleyclark.bsky.social: www.eenews.net/articles/4-t...
eenews.net
4 takeaways from the DC Circuit’s big climate hearing
Nonprofits appeared likely to prevail on their argument that the Trump administration wrongly terminated their Biden-era grants.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
I went on C-Span's Washington Journal this morning to talk about EPA's endangerment finding rollback. People on the other site had a lot of opinions about that, let me tell you. www.c-span.org/program/wash...
c-span.org
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
Well, I was up really, really early. I was on C-span. It was fun, but the callers asked questions about chem trails and salmon and the Hanford Nuclear site that I was hopelessly ill-equipped to answer.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
Instead, it's betting that recent Supreme Court decisions and a more conservative bench will allow it to walk away from regulating climate pollution (with Lesley Clark): www.eenews.net/articles/epa...
eenews.net
EPA invites Supreme Court to upend major climate precedent
With its repeal of a scientific finding that requires greenhouse gas regulation, the agency has reopened a long-settled legal question over its own
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
And it sidelined the five contrarians DOE picked to write that "review" of science last summer, that has run into so many problems: (by @scottpwaldman.bsky.social) www.eenews.net/articles/tru...
eenews.net
Trump sidelines climate contrarians in science rollback
The president has mocked global warming as a “hoax,” but his administration avoided testing that claim in court as it targeted the endangerment finding.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
EPA dropped its assault on climate science: www.eenews.net/articles/epa...
eenews.net
EPA yanks attacks on climate science from endangerment repeal
The agency relied on legal arguments to erase the basis for climate rules, ditching provisions that tried to poke holes in the scientific consensus on
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
Thank you for that!
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
Here's the final rule on endangerment (finally): www.epa.gov/regulations-...
epa.gov
Final Rule: Rescission of the Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding and Motor Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emission Standards Under the Clean Air Act | US EPA
The final rule on the reconsideration of the greenhouse gas endangerment finding and motor vehicle rule.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
People briefed on the endangerment finding repeal tell me that it's based on legal arguments only. It doesn't take aim at the actual science of warming. The repeal could decimate federal climate policy -- if it survives legal challenge.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
So, has anyone out there actually seen the text of the endangerment finding rollback? Because they haven't put it out. And I'm told Zeldin might not even have signed it yet? on Signal at jchemnick.01
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
Here's what EPA just put up on the endangerment finding repeal: www.epa.gov/newsreleases...
epa.gov
President Trump and Administrator Zeldin Deliver Single Largest Deregulatory Action in U.S. History | US EPA
Alongside the President, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the single largest deregulatory action in U.S. history.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
I'm told that the endangerment finding repeal package lands next week. I look at what that could mean for other climate rules, state action, and the future of U.S. climate policy. And on Signal at jchemnick.01, for any tips on when, where, etc.! www.eenews.net/articles/Her....
eenews.net
Here’s what could happen when the endangerment finding dies
States, courts and Congress could be forced to fill the climate policy vacuum.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
But public comments from major cities and organizations -- which would not be part of any form letter campaign -- aren't there. Where are they? Isn't EPA supposed to be making them available at this stage?
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 03/02/2026
A tiny fraction of the 572k public comments EPA received on the endangerment draft have been posted. When I asked EPA about that recently, it said that was because only one sample comment for mass mailer campaigns was posted, “As any reporter familiar with EPA rulemakings would know."
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
Kyle Cheney @kyledcheney.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
JUST IN: In a new lawsuit, Minnesota officials say DHS mishandled evidence from today's crime scene and made "astonishing" law enforcement decisions. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
EPA will soon release its final repeal of Obama's greenhouse gas endangerment finding and all climate regulations for cars and trucks. Then comes all the litigation. Here's my cheat sheet about what folks will be looking for in the final version: subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
subscriber.politicopro.com
E&E News: 3 things to watch in EPA’s endangerment repeal
The agency is close to finalizing its rollback of the endangerment finding. Legal experts say its success could hinge on these details.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
And thank you, @jamesgoodwin.bsky.social, for your help with the story.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
Anybody know if a University of Chicago economist who wasn't even in the government at the time wrote almost half of the regulatory impact analysis for EPA's endangerment/car rules draft repeal? Because it sure looks like he did. Signal jchemnick.01. www.eenews.net/articles/whi...
eenews.net
White House wrote half of EPA’s cost-benefit analysis for climate rule rollback
The move — revealed in emails and internal drafts — sidelined EPA's deep bench of career economists.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
Are you an OAR employee who worked on climate issues and has been reassigned somewhere else? I'd love to know where they're sending you. On Signal at jchemnick.01
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
EPA still has a "walking around money" left over in fy 2026. But it's choosing to furlough some people while others remain on the job and drawing a paycheck. It appears to be keeping those working on deregulation and other priorities. @ellieborst.bsky.social and I: www.eenews.net/articles/epa...
eenews.net
EPA flush with cash for ‘priority’ staff
The agency is taking an unprecedented approach to furloughs during this latest government shutdown.
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Reposted by Jean Chemnick
ellieborst.bsky.social @ellieborst.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
We break down EPA's $45 billion in carryover funds and why only a fraction of the agency's workforce has been furloughed so far. My latest with @chemnick.bsky.social for @eenews.bsky.social
eenews.net
EPA flush with cash for ‘priority’ staff
The agency is taking an unprecedented approach to furloughs during this latest government shutdown.
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Jean Chemnick @chemnick.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
I'm generally interested in how EPA is making progress on regs during the shutdown -- if it is. Always welcome thoughts (Signal jchemnick.01). AI could help speed up the process some: subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
subscriber.politicopro.com
E&E News: How EPA could use AI in the endangerment repeal
The agency indicated that it could use the technology to sort and summarize thousands of public comments.
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