Final Rule Expected This Week on Stricter Ozone Standards

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From TheHill:
The Obama administration is poised this week to issue a final rule on ozone levels that business groups contend would be the single most expensive regulation ever imposed by the U.S. government. 
The air pollution rule, due by Thursday, will touch off another flurry of legal battles and congressional tussling over the president’s environmental agenda, with business groups and Republicans opposed to the rule looking to block it. 
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is expected to tighten its standard for surface-level ozone from 75 parts per billion to between 65 and 70 parts per billion. 
Green groups and health organizations say a tighter standard will help the environment and improve public health, but they too feel they could be left disappointed in the long-awaited rule. 
Industry groups mounted a massive blitz against a draft version of the rule, warning that large sections of the country would fall out of compliance with the standards
and that it would be expensive to bring many locales into compliance. 
The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), which is leading the charge against the rule, commissioned a study earlier this year showing compliance costs topping $1.1 trillion, though environmental groups dismiss those numbers. The manufacturers have taken to calling the rule the most expensive regulation in history, a talking point picked up by Republicans.
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