President Donald Trump’s push to roll back energy regulations is aimed at lowering inflation and easing the cost of living, according to EPA Deputy Administrator David Fotouhi. Speaking at an exclusive Breitbart News event on Monday, Fotouhi outlined how the administration’s deregulatory focus on energy production directly supports affordability for American consumers.
John Carney, Breitbart’s Economics Editor and event moderator, noted the central role energy costs play in driving inflation. “Energy touches everything we buy,” Carney said, emphasizing how cheaper energy can lead to broad price reductions across the economy. He asked how the EPA plans to contribute to that affordability mission.
Fotouhi criticized the Biden administration’s energy policies, stating that a wave of new regulations under Biden increased costs without delivering meaningful environmental benefits. He cited updates to the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards as a key example, noting that Trump-era standards already safeguarded public health. The Biden administration, however, imposed stricter emissions requirements under the pretext of newer technologies, adding substantial costs to power generation.
“These [new] requirements had little to no tie to actual environmental health outcomes,” Fotouhi said, arguing the added regulatory burden threatens to raise electricity bills at a time when Americans are struggling with high prices.
Fotouhi said the Trump administration has proposed reversing those regulatory changes and restoring the 2020 standards. The goal, he explained, is not only to lower utility bills but to drive down costs across the economy by making energy more affordable.
He emphasized that energy costs affect everything from manufacturing to small business services. “It’s the cost of the haircut that they’re purchasing from the barber shop down the street,” he said, illustrating the downstream effects of energy inflation on everyday expenses.
Fotouhi confirmed that the EPA’s efforts under President Trump remain focused on cutting unnecessary red tape and delivering economic relief without compromising essential environmental protections.
