Clean Cars For Arizona News

In a landmark decision in one of the most important environmental cases ever heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, the Court ruled today that the Clean Air Act gives the U.S. EPA the authority to regulate carbon dioxide and other global warming pollutants from cars.

“The Clean Cars Program now has a green light to move forward,” said Diane E. Brown, Executive Director of the Arizona PIRG Education Fund. 

The Court ordered the U.S. EPA to reconsider its decision not to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from cars.  In the meantime, the ruling will have major implications for rules to reduce global warming pollution from cars in California and nine other states.    Under the Clean Air Act, states may adopt California’s tailpipe emissions standards in lieu of minimum federal standards.  Nine states have adopted California’s standards to reduce fleet-wide global warming emissions from new vehicles by 25 percent in model year 2009, rising to 30 percent in model year 2016.  Through Executive Order in September, Governor Napolitano said Arizona should adopt and implement the Clean Cars Program.  Today’s decision allows Arizona to move forward.

U.S. PIRG, the federal advocacy office for Arizona PIRG, is a petitioner in the case, along with a coalition of states, cities, and organizations.  For a complete list of the petitioners and other documents related to the case, go to www.cleancarscampaign.org and click on “Court Action.”