"Payroll Deal Spares EPA Boiler Rules"

"The compromise agreement to extend the payroll tax cut does not include a provision to delay and soften Environmental Protection Agency boiler pollution regulations, according to a Capitol Hill aide familiar with the final deal."

"Industry groups and some Republicans had pushed for inclusion of the measure in the final package, but House and Senate conferees ultimately scuttled the proposal.

Senate Democrats, in recent weeks, had criticized Republicans for advocating for the measure, arguing it was a distraction from the bigger issue of extending the payroll tax cut."

Andrew Restuccia reports for The Hill's E2 Wire blog February 16, 2012.