Less than a week after the Trump administration revoked California’s authority to set its own vehicle emissions standards for cars and trucks, the federal Environmental Protection Agency warned the state that it could lose federal highway funds if it doesn’t clean up its air.
In a letter sent Tuesday to the California Air Resources Board, the EPA described the state’s air quality as the worst in the country with 34 million people living in areas that do not meet National Ambient Air Quality Standards.
The agency called on the state to address a backlog in plans aimed at reducing air pollution, and to work with federal regulators to develop workable plans or risk highway funding sanctions and other penalties.
“California has failed to carry out its most basic responsibilities under the Clean Air Act, and as a result, millions of Californians live in areas that do not meet our nation’s air quality standards,” EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said. “EPA stands ready to work with California to meet the Trump Administration’s goal of clean, healthy air for all Americans, and we hope the state will work with us in good faith.”
California’s leaders contend that they are working hard to meet current federal smog standards, but the state is hindered by the federal government’s failure to strictly control pollution from heavy-duty freight including trucks, trains, planes, and ships.
The state’s top air regulator wasted no time in pushing back Tuesday.
Richard Corey, the board’s executive officer, said that EPA officials aren’t doing their jobs. He pointed out that California went to court to push the agency to enact smog standards. Also, he said that EPA Administrator Wheeler’s letter contains “multiple inaccuracies, omissions and misstatements.”
In an emailed statement, Corey continued, “EPA has unclean hands: It sat on these documents for years and is now pounding the table about paperwork issues of its own creation.
“This letter appeared only days after EPA attacked our state authority on cars, increasing air pollution while at the same time limiting our ability to reduce it,” he said. “If the Trump Administration is serious about air pollution it will reconsider revoking our waiver, and while they’re at it, why not also fund the EPA to review submitted documents in less than a decade?”
Last week, California sued to stop the Trump Administration from revoking its authority to set greenhouse gas emission and fuel economy standards for cars and trucks, and enlisted help from other states in a battle that will shape a key component of the nation’s climate policy.
California and the Trump Administration are fighting over dozens of environmental issues. While the EPA’s move on emissions is one of the latest points of dispute, it’s not even the only one to arise Tuesday.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra sued the federal EPA over its ruling that vast salt ponds in the South Bay are not “waters of the United States.”
Federal law sets standards for how much pollution can come from cars and trucks. But since the 1970s, that law has permitted California to set tougher rules because it has the most cars and struggles to meet air quality standards. On Thursday, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration withdrew California’s waiver.
California has also sued the Trump Administration over is rollback of environmental and clean air regulations.
Michael Casey from the Associated Press contributed to this report. Read his reporting here.
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