100 Plus U.S. Lawmakers Favor California Emissions Standards

Washington DC September 27, 2006; The AIADA newsletter reported that more than 100 lawmakers urged the EPA to allow California to go ahead with new greenhouse gas limits on cars and trucks, reports The Hill.

The proposed standards have sparked a court battle between state lawmakers and the automakers, who claim the state is exceeding its regulatory authority by effectively imposing mileage standards on cars and trucks, a power reserved for the federal government.

The letter, spearheaded by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) along with Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), says California's new rule should be approved based on the Clean Air Act of 1970, which allows the state to develop its own standards on auto emissions as long as they aren't less rigorous than the federal standards.

Republican Reps. Chris Shays and Nancy Johnson of Connecticut, Curt Weldon (R-PA), David Reichart (R-WA), and Charles Bass (R-NH) also signed the letter. California's new standards start with the 2009 model year and are to be phased in over a period of eight years.

The letter says the standards would cut "global warming pollution from new vehicles by almost 30 percent" by 2016.