Supporting the clean vehicle emissions standards of the United States and defending the authority of States under the Clean Air Act to protect the people of those States from harmful air pollution.

Supporting the clean vehicle emissions standards of the United States and defending the authority of States under the Clean Air Act to protect the people of those States from harmful air pollution. Whereas Congress enacted the Clean Air Act ( 42 U.S.C. 7401 Whereas motor vehicle pollution contributes to serious health problems faced by the people of the United States, including— (1) asthma attacks; (2) heart attacks; (3) lung cancer; and (4) premature death; Whereas through climate change, greenhouse gas (referred to in this preamble as GHG (1) worsened air pollution; (2) extreme heat; (3) increased spread of infectious diseases; and (4) exacerbated natural disasters; Whereas all people of the United States are vulnerable to the health impacts of GHGs, but many individuals and communities are at a greater risk of experiencing those impacts, including— (1) children; (2) the elderly; (3) individuals with lung and heart disease; (4) low-income communities; and (5) communities of color; Whereas recent reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the United States Global Change Research Program affirm the need to mitigate climate change and its impacts; Whereas section 209 of the Clean Air Act ( 42 U.S.C. 7543 Whereas section 177 of the Clean Air Act ( 42 U.S.C. 7507 Whereas the Environmental Protection Agency (referred to in this preamble as the EPA 42 U.S.C. 7401 Whereas the States of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington have exercised the authority to adopt, pursuant to the rights of those States preserved under section 177 of the Clean Air Act ( 42 U.S.C. 7507 Whereas the Energy Policy and Conservation Act ( 42 U.S.C. 6201 Public Law 110–140 Whereas the Federal Government, the State of California, and the automobile industry have agreed to a coordinated set of regulations, known as the One National Program (1) aligns, as closely as possible, the model years 2012 and later Federal light-duty vehicle GHG emissions standards and fuel economy standards with the light-duty vehicle GHG emissions standards adopted by California; and (2) sets achievable standards for light-duty vehicle GHG emissions and fuel economy that increase in stringency through model year 2025; Whereas the EPA, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the California Air Resources Board have collaborated on an extensive analysis that clearly demonstrates that the Federal GHG emission standards and the Federal fuel economy standards adopted in 2012 for model years 2017–2025— (1) can be met with a wide range of technologies; (2) are expected to be met with advanced gasoline technologies; and (3) will accommodate contemporary consumer purchasing trends; Whereas, in January 2017, the Administrator of the EPA issued a final determination to maintain the existing GHG emissions standards for vehicles of model year 2022 through 2025, based on the extensive technical record showing that those standards are appropriate and achievable; Whereas the light-duty vehicle GHG emissions and fuel economy standards of the United States— (1) support more than 288,000 automobile manufacturing jobs across 1,200 facilities in the United States; (2) keep automobile companies in the United States globally competitive as other countries adopt strict clean vehicle emissions standards; and (3) protect consumers in the United States from dirtier and more costly technology; Whereas the transportation sector has surpassed the energy sector as the largest source of GHG emissions in the United States; Whereas the light-duty vehicle GHG emissions and fuel economy standards of the United States, if fully implemented through model year 2025, will— (1) reduce the consumption of oil in the United States by 2,400,000 barrels per day; (2) save consumers in the United States $130,000,000,000 at the gas pump by 2030; and (3) reduce GHG emissions in the United States by 470,000,000 metric tons by 2030; Whereas the light-duty vehicle GHG emissions and fuel economy standards of the United States protect low-income communities and communities of color from being disproportionately affected by public health and economic burdens; and Whereas 87 percent of people in the United States— (1) support maintaining strong clean vehicle emissions standards; and (2) want automakers to continue to improve fuel economy for all types of vehicles: Now, therefore, be it That Congress— (1) supports the existing set of regulations, known as the One National Program (A) reducing greenhouse gas (referred to in this resolving clause as GHG (B) protecting national security; and (C) protecting human health and welfare; and (2) to meet those goals, supports policies that— (A) achieve maximum feasible reductions in oil use; (B) reduce GHG emissions from mobile sources; (C) recognize the rights and importance of States under cooperative federalism to choose to set and follow vehicle emissions standards under the Clean Air Act ( 42 U.S.C. 7401 (D) ensure that the President, the Secretary of Transportation, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency solicit input from State parties impacted by any changes to the existing GHG emissions standards for light-duty vehicles and the associated standards for corporate average fuel economy.

Summary: This concurrent resolution supports existing regulations with the goals of (1) reducing greenhouse gas emissions and oil usage, and (2) protecting national security and human health and welfare. The concurrent resolution also supports policies that will help meet these goals, such as policies that achieve maximum feasible reductions in oil use.