Regulatory Relief for Certain Stationary Sources to Promote American Coke Oven Processing Security
This Presidential Proclamation issues a two-year regulatory exemption to specific coke oven stationary sources listed in Annex I from meeting certain compliance deadlines established by the EPA's July 5, 2024, Coke Oven Rule.
The President asserts that the required emissions-control technologies are not commercially available, and adherence to the current schedule would severely harm the domestic coke and steel industry, thereby undermining national security and the production of materials necessary for critical infrastructure and defense.
Arguments For
The new EPA emissions standards (Coke Oven Rule) require implementing emissions-control technologies that are not yet commercially demonstrated or cost-effective, placing an impossible compliance burden on facilities.
The potential closure of coke production facilities due to unachievable compliance timelines threatens the domestic supply of coke, which is vital for the steel industry, critical infrastructure, and military readiness.
Granting a two-year exemption preserves national security and economic stability by preventing premature facility shutdowns while new technologies are developed or proven at scale, utilizing the President's statutory authority under the Clean Air Act.
Arguments Against
Exempting facilities from established environmental regulations undermines the Environmental Protection Agency's mandate to protect public health and the environment from hazardous air pollutants.
Delaying compliance with necessary emission controls extends the period during which harmful pollutants are released, potentially leading to negative local health impacts near the affected facilities.
Bypassing established regulatory timelines through a proclamation can set a precedent that weakens faith in established environmental review processes and the application of the Clean Air Act.
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
This introductory section formally announces that the document is a Proclamation issued by the President of the United States.
- Steel plays a vital role in the United States economy and daily life, underpinning infrastructure, manufacturing, and various other industries. It is a fundamental material for construction, transportation, energy systems, military hardware, and countless other products, contributing significantly to the Nation’s economic output and job creation. Currently, approximately 70 percent of all steel is made using metallurgical coke, a high-quality fuel and reductant used in blast furnaces to reduce iron ore to pig iron. A strong coke industry is therefore vital to building and maintaining critical infrastructure and military readiness.
The opening paragraph establishes the critical importance of steel to the U.S. economy, infrastructure, manufacturing, and defense.
It specifically notes that most steel production relies on metallurgical coke, framing a strong coke industry as essential for national infrastructure and military readiness.
- On July 5, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency published a final rule, pursuant to section 112 of the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 7412, titled National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants for Coke Ovens: Pushing, Quenching, and Battery Stacks, and Coke Oven Batteries; Residual Risk and Technology Review, and Periodic Technology Review, 89 FR 55684 (Coke Oven Rule). The Coke Oven Rule imposes new emissions-control requirements on coke oven facilities.
This section identifies the specific regulatory action being addressed: the Environmental Protection Agency's final rule published on July 5, 2024, under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act.
This rule, referred to as the Coke Oven Rule, mandates new controls for hazardous air pollutant emissions from coke oven facilities.
- The Coke Oven Rule places severe burdens on the coke production industry and, through its indirect effects, on the viability of our Nation’s critical infrastructure, defense, and national security. Specifically, the Coke Oven Rule requires compliance with standards premised on the application of emissions-control technologies that do not yet exist in a commercially demonstrated or cost-effective form. Many of the testing and monitoring requirements outlined in the Coke Oven Rule rely on technologies that are not practically available, not demonstrated at the necessary scale, or cannot be implemented safely or consistently under real-world conditions. Due to the Coke Oven Rule’s onerous implementation and compliance schedule for these standards, many coke production facilities are in the impossible position of designing and engineering novel systems with unproven technology within a short time frame. The current compliance timeline of the Coke Oven Rule as set forth at 89 FR 55690 therefore raises the unacceptable risk of threatening facility closures, production halts, and lasting harm to the domestic coke production industry. This in turn would undermine our national security, as these effects would substantially impact local and national economies and would undermine the coke and steel sectors’ vital role in producing the iron and steel needed to support critical infrastructure and defense.
Paragraph three explains the justification for action, arguing the Coke Oven Rule imposes severe burdens.
The primary issue cited is that the required emissions-control technology is technologically unavailable, unproven at scale, or not cost-effective for commercial use.
The strict compliance deadlines force facilities to use novel, unproven systems, creating an unacceptable risk of facility closures and production halts, which would jeopardize the national supply of coke needed for infrastructure and defense.
- Now, Therefore, I, Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, including section 112(i)(4) of the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 7412(i)(4), do hereby proclaim that certain stationary sources subject to the Coke Oven Rule, as identified in Annex I of this proclamation, are exempt from compliance with certain requirements of the Coke Oven Rule for a period of 2 years beyond the Coke Oven Rule’s relevant compliance dates (Exemption). This Exemption applies to all compliance deadlines established under the Coke Oven Rule applicable to the stationary sources listed in Annex I, with each such deadline extended by 2 years from the date originally required for such deadline. The effect of this Exemption is that, during each such 2-year period and with respect to the particular requirements identified in Annex I, these stationary sources will be subject to the emissions and compliance obligations that they are currently subject to under the applicable standard as that standard existed prior to the Coke Oven Rule. In support of this Exemption, I hereby make the following determinations:
This section enacts the official action, using constitutional and statutory authority, specifically Section 112(i)(4) of the Clean Air Act.
The President exempts specific coke oven sources, listed in Annex I, from compliance with the new Coke Oven Rule requirements for a period of two years past their original deadlines.
During this exemption period, the affected facilities revert to complying with the standards that were in place before the 2024 rule took effect.
a. The technology to implement the Coke Oven Rule is not available. Such technology does not exist in a commercially viable form sufficient to allow implementation of and compliance with the Coke Oven Rule by the compliance dates in the Coke Oven Rule.
The first determination supporting the exemption states that the technology needed to meet the Coke Oven Rule standards is unavailable in a commercially viable state, preventing facilities from achieving compliance by the established deadlines.
b. It is in the national security interests of the United States to issue this Exemption for the reasons stated in paragraphs 1 and 3 of this proclamation.
The second supporting determination asserts that issuing this exemption is necessary for the national security interests of the United States, based on the findings in the first and third paragraphs regarding the importance of coke and steel production.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
twenty-first day of November, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fiftieth.
DONALD J. TRUMP
This closing section formally dates and signs the proclamation (November 21, 2025) by President Donald J. Trump, referencing the 250th year of American Independence.
It also provides a link to Annex I, which contains the specific list of stationary sources affected by the exemption.