WASHINGTON – EPA has released an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) soliciting public input on the effects of climate change and the potential ramifications of the Clean Air Act in relation to greenhouse gas emissions.

"The ANPR reflects the complexity and the magnitude of the question of whether and how greenhouse gases could be effectively controlled under the Clean Air Act," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson.

Today's action is in response to the April 2, 2007 Supreme Court decision in "Massachusetts v. EPA", which found that greenhouse gas emissions could be regulated if EPA determines they cause or contribute to air pollution that may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare. With the ANPR, EPA is evaluating the broader ramifications of the decision throughout the Clean Air Act, which covers air pollution from both stationary and mobile sources.

The ANPR solicits public input as EPA considers the specific effects of climate change and potential regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. In the advance notice, EPA presents and requests comment on the best-available science, requests relevant data, and asks questions about the advantages and disadvantages of using the Clean Air Act to potentially regulate stationary and mobile sources of greenhouse gases. The ANPR also reviews various petitions, lawsuits and court deadlines before the agency, and the profound effect regulating under the Clean Air Act could have on the economy.

The notice's publication in the Federal Register begins a 120-day public comment period.