S 5409: Environmental Health Restoration Act of 2026

S 5409 in plain English: This bill would require use of a social cost of carbon valued at $190 per metric ton (in 2020 dollars) in federal decision-making and would appropriate approximately $10,993,653,000 to the Environmental Protection Agency to carry out related duties.

Stated purpose

The bill aims to restore and strengthen the EPA's duty to protect human health and the environment by reinstating environmental regulations that were in place as of January 19, 2025, halting what it describes as unlawful deregulatory actions, and requiring renewed enforcement of the Clean Air Act.

Key points

• Sets the social cost of carbon at $190 per metric ton in 2020 dollars for use in federal decisions
• Appropriates approximately $10,993,653,000 to the EPA to carry out the bill's requirements

Arguments supporters make

• Rolling back these rules exposed people to proven health hazards like mercury, soot, and toxic air pollutants, and restoring them protects public health, especially in communities near industrial sites.
• The EPA is legally required by the Clean Air Act to set and enforce these standards, so this bill simply compels the agency to follow existing law rather than creating new mandates.
• Restoring the scientific advisory boards and environmental justice programs ensures that EPA decisions are grounded in independent science rather than political pressure.

Arguments opponents make

• Locking specific regulations in place by statute removes the executive branch's normal flexibility to update rules as circumstances, technology, or economic conditions change.
• Many of the deregulatory actions the bill targets went through formal legal and rulemaking processes, so characterizing them as unlawful prejudges court determinations that have not yet been made.
• Mandating reinstatement of all prior rules within 60 days without any cost-benefit review could impose heavy compliance burdens on industries and workers before alternatives or updated standards are considered.

Tradeoffs

Restoring stricter environmental rules may reduce pollution-related health risks but also increases compliance costs for energy producers and manufacturers, potentially affecting energy prices and jobs. Giving Congress sole authority to change these rules adds stability but limits the executive branch's ability to adapt regulations to new scientific, economic, or technological realities.

Current status in Congress: In committee.

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