U.S. Capitol Building. Photo: Wally Gobetz via Flikr
May 22, 2025 (Boston, MA) – Congress has gutted state authority to adopt standards that would increase the availability of clean cars and trucks and drive down the amount of tailpipe pollution in the air we breathe. Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) released the following statement in response.
“Congress just slammed the brakes on progress by rolling back clean car and truck standards—steering us straight into more pollution, higher costs, and climate chaos,” said CLF Director of Clean Mobility Emily Green. “It’s a blatant gift to the fossil fuel industry and leaves New England and the nation stuck in traffic on the road to a healthier, sustainable future. This isn’t leadership—it’s a dangerous U-turn.”
The Environmental Protection Agency has granted California waivers to adopt stronger pollution standards for cars and trucks than those of the federal government for decades. Other states have followed suit and adopted California’s standards. The Senate voted to revoke three of California’s Clean Air Act waivers under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) despite the Senate Parliamentarian and House’s Government Accountability Office’s determinations that doing so would violate the CRA.
“Senate Republicans’ abuse of the Congressional Review Act to attack state power and state clean transportation programs is a dangerous overreach. By overruling the Parliamentarian and expanding the CRA’s reach, the Senate GOP has opened the door to congressional meddling in all sorts of decision-making left, by law, to agency technical experts—setting a reckless and deeply damaging precedent,” added Green.
Transportation is the largest source of carbon pollution in New England. Harmful exhaust from tailpipes causes asthma and other health problems, especially in low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. Switching from gas-powered cars to electric vehicles cuts the pollution that endangers health and fuels climate change.
According to the American Lung Association, a national switch to clean cars by 2035 as envisioned under the clean cars standards could prevent almost 90,000 premature deaths, 2.2 million asthma attacks, 10.7 million lost days of work, and $978 billion in cumulative public health costs by 2050.
CLF experts are available for further comment.
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