November 5, 2013

The Honorable Gina McCarthy Administrator U.S. Environmental Protection Agency William Jefferson Clinton Building Mail Code 1101A 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20460

Dear Administrator McCarthy:

We applaud the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA ) for proposing strong “Tier 3” clean vehicle and fuel standards, which will make our air cleaner to breathe and save lives. We are writing to strongly urge you to finalize these crit ical standards as soon as possible, in order to maximize the economic, public health and air qualit y benefits that these standards deliver.

Recent reports in the media have suggested EPA may not finalize Tier 3 standards by the end of 2013, a possibility made more real by the governmen t shutdown. Failing to finalize these standards by the end of the year could unnecessaril y expose Americans to health risks and health-related costs.

The health benefits associated with the Tier 3 prop osal are well established. By reducing the sulfur content of gasoline and tailpipe pollution, the proposed standards would prevent up to 2,400 premature deaths, 3,200 hospital visits and 2 2,000 asthma attacks annually by 2030. Further, the standards would prevent 1.8 million lo st school and workdays.

The proposed Tier 3 standards will dramatically red uce emissions of ozone-forming pollution, which exacts a substantial toll on our public healt h and our environment, including our national parks and other public lands. Compared to existing standards for new vehicles, the proposed standards would cut fleet-wide emissions of nitroge n oxides and volatile organic compounds by 80 percent. Further, Tier 3 standards would reduce per-vehicle particulate matter by 70 percent. These emissions reductions are critical for states to meet health-based air quality standards under the Clean Air Act.

In addition to significant health benefits, Tier 3 will also realize economic benefits. According to a study by Navigant Economics, Tier 3 will creat e over 24,000 new jobs over three years for pollution control equipment installation at the nat ion’s refineries. Another nearly 5,300 jobs will be created by the operation and maintenance of this new equipment.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s Tier 3 propos al will significantly reduce vehicle pollution and make our air cleaner to breathe. But these benefits are only achieved once the standard is finalized and implemented. EPA’s job i s not yet done. The agency must finalize Tier 3 standards as soon as possible and prevent delays of the substantial economic, health and environmental benefits that will come from their im plementation.Sincerely,

John Judge CEO Appalachian Mountain Club

David Foster Executive Director Blue Green Alliance

Kieran Suckling Executive Director Center for Biological Diversity

Frank O’Donnell President Clean Air Watch

Robert Wendelgass President Clean Water Action

Kathleen Rogers President Earth Day Network

Margie Alt Executive Director Environment America

Fred Krupp President Environmental Defense Fund

Howard Learner President & Executive Director Environmental Law and Policy Center Gene Karpinski President League of Conservation Voters

Dominique Browning Senior Director Moms Clean Air Force

Theresa Pierno Acting President National Parks and Conservation Association

Frances Beinecke President Natural Resources Defense Council

Dan Becker Director Safe Climate Campaign

Michael Brune Executive Director Sierra Club

Stephen A. Smith, DVM Executive Director Southern Alliance for Clean Energy

Kathleen Rest Executive Director Union of Concerned Scientists

Peggy M. Shepard Executive Director WE ACT for Environmental Justice