Sierra Club and Others Take Legal Action to Protect Clean Car Standards

Washington, DC -- Today, the Sierra Club and other environmental and consumer advocacy groups filed a petition for review with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia against Scott Pruitt’s Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) decision that the light-duty vehicle standards for model years 2022 to 2025 are no longer appropriate and should be revised. The filing was made in response to Scott Pruitt’s attempts to roll back the clean car standards for passenger cars and light trucks.

In early 2017, the Obama EPA found that automakers are well positioned to meet the existing clean car standards at lower costs than originally estimated; that the standards will result in lower climate pollution and oil consumption significantly, and that they will significantly benefit consumers and the public.

In response, Sierra Club Chief Climate Counsel Joanne Spalding released the following statement:

“We’ve warned Scott Pruitt that any attack on our clean air or water would be met by resistance in the streets and in the courtroom. Today’s lawsuit serves as yet another reminder to Pruitt that we will never back down from that claim. No amount of lying or misinformation can change the fact that the clean car standards are not only widely supported, but are vital to protecting our clean air and wallets. Pruitt knew that a fact-based review of the standards would have resulted in the same conclusions as the Obama administration reached, which is why he has provided no reasoned justification for the agency’s change in position. We will continue to meet Pruitt in the courts and the streets until he listens to the American people rather than corporate polluters.”