BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
1. Steel is not just a metal; it is the backbone of the United States economy and daily life, forming the structural integrity of our infrastructure and manufacturing sectors. From towering skyscrapers to the vehicles that transport us, steel is integral to construction, transportation, energy systems, military hardware, and a host of other products. Currently, around 70 percent of all steel production relies on metallurgical coke, a premium fuel and reductant essential for transforming iron ore into pig iron. Thus, a robust coke industry is crucial for the maintenance of our critical infrastructure and national defense.
2. On July 5, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) unveiled a final rule under section 112 of the Clean Air Act, 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 (commonly referred to as the Coke Oven Rule). This regulation imposes stringent emissions-control requirements on coke oven facilities.
3. However, the Coke Oven Rule imposes daunting challenges on the coke production industry, indirectly jeopardizing the viability of our nation’s critical infrastructure, defense, and overall national security. Specifically, the rule mandates compliance with standards based on emissions-control technologies that are not yet available in a commercially viable or effective form. Many of the outlined testing and monitoring requirements depend on technologies that are not only unproven at necessary scales but also impractical to implement safely in real-world conditions. The tight compliance timeline dictated by the Coke Oven Rule places many coke production facilities in an untenable position, forcing them to develop innovative systems with untested technology within an unreasonably short timeframe. Consequently, the current compliance deadlines as stipulated in 89 FR 55690 pose an unacceptable risk of facility closures, production disruptions, and lasting damage to the domestic coke production sector. Such outcomes threaten not only local and national economies but also the essential role of the coke and steel industries in providing the iron and steel necessary for supporting critical infrastructure and defense.
4. Therefore, I, Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, by the authority granted to 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 declare that certain stationary sources subject to the Coke Oven Rule, as identified in Annex I of this proclamation, are exempt from compliance with specific requirements of the Coke Oven Rule for a period of two years beyond the relevant compliance dates (hereinafter referred to as the Exemption). This Exemption applies to all compliance deadlines established under the Coke Oven Rule relevant to the stationary sources listed in Annex I, with each deadline extended by two years from its original requirement. As a result of this Exemption, during this two-year period, these stationary sources will continue to adhere to the emissions and compliance obligations that were in place under the previous standards prior to the Coke Oven Rule. In support of this Exemption, I hereby assert the following determinations:
a. The technology necessary to implement the Coke Oven Rule is not currently available. Such technology lacks a commercially viable form that would enable compliance by the stipulated deadlines.
b. Issuing this Exemption serves the national security interests of the United States for the reasons detailed in paragraphs 1 and 3 of this proclamation.
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
Annex
