Whitehouse Statement: Examining the Case for the California Waiver
Hearing Before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee
Madam Chairman, thank you for holding this important hearing, and for your commitment to addressing the growing threat of climate change to our nation and our world. Your leadership and tenacity are inspiring.
I also share your concerns regarding the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) failure to act expeditiously to approve the Clean Cars Program in California and eleven other states, including my state of Rhode Island.
As my colleagues know, over 18 months ago California submitted a request for a waiver under the Clean Air Act to enact a stricter standard to regulate vehicle carbon dioxide emissions than is currently required under federal law. Since that time, while the dangers of global warming mounted, the EPA has sat on its hands, doing little more than to issue a litany of excuses for its failure to respond to California's request.
Meanwhile, the more than 100 million people of these twelve states, representing 1/3 of our nation's population, have been prevented from taking critically-needed action to reduce their contributions to global warming, save money at the gas pump, and breathe cleaner air.
Fortunately, last month, the Supreme Court stepped in. In its landmark decision in Massachusetts v. EPA, the Court made it clear that the Agency has the authority to regulate vehicle CO2 emissions. This effectively clears the way for the Agency to grant California's - and the other participating states' - waiver requests.
It is very frustrating, Madam Chairman, to be confronted with an EPA that must be taken to court and compelled to do its job. The time for delay has ended. The EPA must move forward and allow my state, and your state, and these other states, to take the urgent action we need to protect our environment and our communities' health.
The benefits of the Clean Cars Program are without question. If the program were to take effect today, the twelve participating states would collectively reduce vehicle emissions by 392 million tons by 2020 - a reduction level equivalent to taking 74 million cars off the road for an entire year. Or to put it another way, these savings are equivalent to the current global warming emissions of entire countries such as Ireland, Sweden, and Israel.
A report released just yesterday by Environment Rhode Island compared the projected reductions in global warming pollution by each state participating in the Clean Cars Program. It found that by 2020 each state will have cut its emissions by an average of 17 percent, equaling a combined total of 74 millions fewer tons of carbon dioxide being released into our environment.
Furthermore, improved vehicle efficiency will save consumers money at the gas pump and reduce our dependence on foreign oil - bringing us one step closer to achieving true energy independence in the United States. The report by Environment Rhode Island estimates that the Clean Cars Program could reduce gasoline consumption by as much as 8.3 billion gallons per year and save consumers up to $25.8 billion annually in fuel costs. With gas prices up an average of $1.02 since January, Madam Chairman, this is a no-brainer.
But the more the EPA hems and haws, the longer Americans must wait. We can't afford that any longer.
Before Californians, Rhode Islanders, and millions of other Americans can begin to experience the benefits of cleaner air and increased savings at the pump, the EPA must approve a waiver for the state of California. And 18 months is long enough. I look forward to hearing the testimony today from our panel and learning more about the ways in which the Clean Cars Program can begin to address the looming threat of global warming across this country.
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