The leaders of the Colorado State House and Senate submitted testimony supporting California's petition to the EPA to allow states to set stricter vehicle emissions standards. Speaker of the House Andrew Romanoff wrote a letter to the EPA administrator Stephen Johnson on May 28th explaining that global warming must me addressed as Colorado is beginning to feel its effects. He noted the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warnings that global warming could threaten water security intensify the wildfire season and increase heat waves.

California is petitioning the EPA to allow California to set its own rules through the Clean Air Act. The law was approved in 2002, and would require automobile makers to produce cars with greater emissions restrictions than are mandated by the federal government. The automakers would be required to reduce emissions by 25 percent from cars and light trucks and 18 percent from SUVs starting in the 2009 model year. This law would reduce global-warming output from new vehicles by 23 percent in 2012.

The real issue here is state's rights. States have the right to protect citizens from harmful air pollution. Many states believe that the Bush Administration is not doing enough to tackle global warming. Bush has asked federal agencies to start making regulations to cut emissions, and the US Supreme Court ruled in April that the EPA has the authority to regulate vehicle emissions. However, the EPA has been reluctant to grant the waiver based on their uncertainty of whether a federal agency has the authority to set fuel economy standards. The EPA is clearly putting special interests before the rights of citizens.

California, along with 11 states which will follow, wish to practice the state's right to reduce emissions and protect their citizens from the negative affects of air pollution. Other states can adopt the California standards if the states can show they are necessary and more cost effective than alternative cleanup strategies. In the letter to the EPA, Romanoff states that California's standards are feasible and cost effective. The technology already exists to meet the stricter standard. The standard will also save consumers money at the gas pump.

Although Colorado has not yet passed stricter emissions standards, Senate President Fitzgerald and Romanoff would like to reserve the right to do so in the future. The EPA must grant California's waiver, in order to give Colorado and other states the legal tools they need to tackle global warming. Cheers to Senate President Joan Fitzgerald and speaker of the House Andrew Romanoff for supporting clean cars in the battle against global warming!

For more information on this issue visit: www.cleancarscampaign.org

Written by Meghan McClosky, Global Warming Organizer