• EPA chief reverses decision to delay rules on emissions,
WASHINGTON — One day after getting sued by Pennsylvania and 14 other states, Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt on Wednesday reversed his earlier decision to delay implementation of Obama-era rules reducing emissions of smog-causing air pollutants.
Mr. Pruitt presented the change as his agency being more responsive than past administrations to the needs of state environmental regulators. He made no mention of the legal challenge filed against his prior position in a federal appeals court.
At issue is an Oct. 1 deadline for states to begin meeting 2015 standards for ground-level ozone. Mr. Pruitt announced in June he would delay compliance by one year to give his agency more time to study the plan and avoid “interfering with local decisions or impeding economic growth.”
Mr. Pruitt, who served as Oklahoma’s state attorney general prior to his appointment by President Donald Trump, has long served as a reliable opponent of stricter environmental regulations. Since arriving in Washington, Mr. Pruitt has repeatedly moved to block or delay regulations opposed by the chemical and fossil-fuel industries.
In a statement issued Wednesday evening, Mr. Pruitt suggested his aboutface on ozone standards simply reinforced the EPA’s commitment to working with states through the complex process of meeting the new standards on time.
Still, the EPA’s statement said Mr. Pruitt may at some point once again use his “delay authority and all other authority legally available” to ensure regulations “are founded on sound policy and the best available information.”
Pennsylvania was joined in the case by California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, and the District of Columbia.
Affirmative action
The Justice Department said Wednesday it had no broad plans to investigate whether college and university admission programs discriminate against students based on race, seeking to defray worries that a job posting signaled an effort to reverse course on affirmative action.
News reports of the posting inflamed advocacy groups that believed it would lead to legal action against universities for not admitting white students over minorities with similar qualifications.
But a day after reports that the department was seeking current attorneys interested in “investigations and possible litigation related to intentional racebased discrimination in college and university admissions,” the Justice Department said the job ad was related to just one complaint.
College aid for vets
Congress sent Mr. Trump legislation to provide the biggest expansion of college aid for military veterans in a decade.
The Senate cleared the bill by voice vote on Wednesday, passing the second piece of legislation aimed at addressing urgent problems at the beleaguered Department of Veterans Affairs in as many days. The House passed the bipartisan college aid legislation last week.
Boy Scouts speech
Faced with a firm denial from the Boy Scouts, the White House on Wednesday corrected Mr. Trump’s claim that the head of the youth group called him to heap praise on a politically aggressive speech Mr. Trump delivered at the Scouts’ national jamboree.