H.R. 10425: Environmental Health Restoration Act of 2026

This bill would direct the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reverse a set of recent rollbacks and restore several air-pollution and climate-related rules that were in effect on January 19, 2025. In practical terms, it would require the EPA to bring back and keep in place existing limits and enforcement programs covering:

• greenhouse gas emissions from power plants;
• methane and volatile organic compound emissions from oil and gas operations;
• mercury and air toxics standards;
• the EPA’s greenhouse gas reporting program;
• standards for hazardous air pollutants;
• PM2.5 air quality standards; and
• vehicle greenhouse gas emissions standards for light-duty, medium-duty, and heavy-duty vehicles.

The bill would also forbid the President, the EPA Administrator, or any other federal official from delaying, suspending, repealing, weakening, or exempting these regulations unless Congress specifically authorizes the change in a new law.

It would require the EPA to restore staffing and operations for two scientific advisory bodies: the Science Advisory Board and the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee. The bill says these groups should be fully staffed and that members should not have financial or advisory ties to regulated industries. It also requires EPA regulatory decisions to be based on peer-reviewed science.

The bill would restore the use of the “social cost of carbon” in EPA rulemakings involving greenhouse gas emissions. It specifies that the EPA should use a 2 percent discount rate and a value of $190 per metric ton in 2020 dollars.

On enforcement, the bill would require the EPA to maintain enough funding and personnel to consistently enforce the covered programs, subject to available appropriations. It would also require the EPA to submit an annual report to Congress on inspections, violations, penalties, and corrective actions under environmental laws it administers. The bill authorizes $10.99 billion, adjusted for inflation, for fiscal year 2027 and each year after, to carry out these duties.

The bill would also restore and expand environmental justice programs that were reduced or eliminated after January 19, 2025. It would direct the EPA to give priority to monitoring, permitting oversight, and enforcement in communities facing higher pollution burdens. For any rulemaking, regulatory action, or enforcement policy affecting air or water quality, the EPA would have to prepare and publish a public health impact assessment looking at effects on death rates, respiratory illness, cardiovascular disease, and cumulative exposure burdens. The bill also requires the EPA to consider cumulative impacts in regulatory and permitting decisions and to publish annual reports on pollution trends, enforcement actions, and progress in reducing health disparities.

To enforce the bill, any person harmed by the EPA’s failure to comply could sue in federal court. A court could order the EPA to comply, and in some cases award attorney’s fees.

The bill does not limit states from adopting or enforcing stronger environmental standards than federal law. It also preserves existing rights to petition the EPA for required action and to bring nuisance claims under common law.

Relevant Companies

• XOM - Exxon Mobil could be affected by methane and oil-and-gas emissions rules, as well as broader EPA climate and air-pollution enforcement.
• CVX - Chevron could be affected by methane and volatile organic compound requirements for oil and gas operations.
• SLB - SLB could be indirectly affected if stricter oil-and-gas emissions rules change operator compliance needs and demand for monitoring or emissions-related services.
• BKR - Baker Hughes could be indirectly affected through equipment and services used by oil and gas operators to meet methane and emissions standards.
• F - Ford could be affected by reinstated vehicle greenhouse gas standards for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles.
• GM - General Motors could be affected by reinstated vehicle emissions standards for passenger and commercial vehicles.
• TSLA - Tesla could be affected by vehicle greenhouse gas standards that influence the market for low-emission vehicles and regulatory compliance for automakers.
• PCG - PG&E could be affected by restored power-plant greenhouse gas rules and related EPA enforcement affecting utility operations.
• NEE - NextEra Energy could be affected by reinstated power-sector greenhouse gas regulations and EPA climate-related rulemaking.