Stronger standards would support climate, public health, and consumer protection
 
 
Washington (November 5, 2021) – Today, Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Representative Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), joined by eight senators and 35 representatives, sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan in support of strengthening the new greenhouse gas emission vehicle standards. The bicameral letter calls for EPA to adopt the most stringent of the proposed alternatives for the vehicle greenhouse gas emissions standard rulemaking for passenger cars and light trucks for Model Years 2023-2026. Additionally, the letter requests that the EPA increase standard stringency by an additional ten grams of carbon dioxide per mile and change or eliminate credits included in the proposed rule to maximize measurable greenhouse gas emissions reductions. 
 
“While we appreciate the urgency with which the EPA has worked to reinvigorate our federal vehicle greenhouse gas emissions standards, the proposed rule’s current preferred option includes loopholes that could harm the Biden administration’s efforts to make up for the lost years of climate inaction under the Trump administration,” wrote the lawmakers in their letter to EPA Administrator Michael Reagan. “More robust standards are affordable and technologically feasible. Raising the bar and ensuring that the standards are not weakened by unnecessary credits would help avoid the most catastrophic effects of the climate crisis and save money for consumers.”
 
A copy of the letter can be found HERE.
 
The Senate letter also was signed by Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.).
 
The House letter was signed by Representatives Nanette Diaz Barragán (CA-44), Jared Huffman (CA-02), Rashida Tlaib (MI-13), Yvette Clarke (NY-09), Alan Lowenthal (CA-47), Mike Levin (CA-49), Earl Blumenauer (OR-03), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11), Jahana Hayes (CT-05), Steve Cohen (TN-09), Bobby Rush (IL-01), Peter Welch (VT-At Large), Mondaire Jones (NY-17), Karen Bass (CA-37), Anna Eshoo (CA-18), André Carson (IN-07), Ro Khanna (CA-17), Suzanne Bonamici (OR-01), Julia Brownley (CA-26), Jim Costa (CA-16), Barbara Lee (CA-13), Jerry McNerney (CA-09), Judy Chu (CA-27), Danny Davis (IL-07), Kathy Castor (FL-14), Grace Napolitano (CA-32), Lucille Roybal-Allard (CA-40), Brenda Lawrence (MI-14), Raúl Grijalva (AZ-03), Maxine Waters (CA-43), Marie Newman (IL-03), Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Sylvia García (TX-29), Jesús "Chuy" García (IL-04), and Nikema Williams (GA-05)
 
In March 2021, Senator Markey and Rep. Matsui were joined by their colleagues in letters to President Biden urging the administration to reset ambitious fuel economy and vehicle greenhouse gas emission standards, using the Obama-era standards as a baseline.
 
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