Sierra Club Statement on EPA Hearing to Regrant States’ Authority to Protect Residents from Tailpipe Pollution

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, the EPA is hosting its public virtual hearing on a proposed rule that would regrant California its Clean Air Act waiver, reversing an illegal and unprecedented move by the previous administration that impacted communities across the country. 

The Trump administration’s revocation of California’s waiver affected 13 additional states and Washington D.C. which adopted stronger than federal vehicle emission standards, 11 of which also adopted the zero emission vehicle standards before Trump took office. The California clean car standards protect the environment and the public health of more than 118 million people, upwards of 40 percent of the U.S. population.

The Sierra Club and Earthjustice, among a broad coalition of public health and environmental groups, took Trump’s EPA to court to preserve states’ rights to protect their communities from pollution.

The morning of the EPA hearing, Sierra Club President Ramón Cruz released the following statement:

“Reinstating California’s Clean Air Act waiver to set strong vehicle emissions standards will reduce harmful tailpipe pollution not just in California, but in states across the nation that have adopted these standards and will advance climate action to slash emissions from transportation and bring cleaner air to communities.

“We urge the EPA to finalize reinstatement of California’s waiver - supported by 7,000 Sierra Club members and supporters - and to take urgent and critical action on the federal clean car standards. It’s time to reinstate our strongest tool against climate change, go further than any prior administration, and put a Biden clean car standard in the fast lane.”